THE 

LION  OF  JANINA 


ua 


MAURUS  -JOKAl 


MAURUS    JOKAI 


THE     LION     OF   JANINA 


OR 


THE  LAST  DAYS  OF  THE  JANISSARIES 


Gurfeisb  TRovel 


TRANSLATED    BY 

R.    NISBET    BAIN 


HARPER    &    BROTHERS    PUBLISHERS 
NEW    YORK    AND    LONDON 

1898 


BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR. 


THE  GREEN  BOOK;  or,  Freedom  Under  the 
Snow.  A  Novel.  Translated  by  Mrs.  WAUGH. 
16mo,  Cloth,  Ornamental,  $1  60.  (In  "The  Odd 
Number  Series.") 

BLACK  DIAMONDS.  A  Novel.  Translated  by 
FRANCES  A.  GERARD.  With  a  Photogravure  Por- 
trait of  the  Author.  16mo,  Cloth,  Ornamental, 
$1  50.  (In  "The  Odd  Number  Series.") 


HARPER  &   BROTHERS,   PUBLISHERS, 
NEW  YORK  AND  LONDON. 


Copyright,  1897,  by  HARPER  &  BROTHERS. 

All  rights  rtserutU. 


THE   LION   OF  JANINA 


2036194 


PREFACE 


THE  first  edition  of  Janicsdrok  vtgnapjai  appear- 
ed forty-five  years  ago.  It  was  immediately  pre- 
ceded by  the  great  historical  romance,  Erdcly  ar- 
anykora  (  The  Golden  Age  of  Transylvania),  and  the 
still  more  famous  novel  of  manners,  Egy  Magyar 
Nabob  (A  Hungarian  Nabob],  which  Hungarians 
regard  as,  indisputably,  Jokai's  masterpiece,  while 
only  a  few  months  separate  it  from  KdrpdtJiy  Zol- 
tdn  (Sultan  KarpatJiy],  the  brilliant  sequel  to  the 
Nabob.  Thus  it  belongs  to  the  author's  best  liter- 
ary period. 

It  is  also  one  of  the  most  striking  specimens  of 
that  peculiar  group  of  Turkish  stories,  such  as 
Torokvilag  Magyarorszagon  (Turkey  in  Hungary] 
and  Torok  mozgolmak  ( Turkish  Incursions),  A  ktts- 
zarvu  ember  (The  Man  with  the  Antlers),  and  the 
extremely  popular  Feh^r  rozsa  (White  Rose],  which 
form  a  genre  apart  of  Jdkai's  own  creation,  irf 
which  his  exuberant  imagination  revels  in  the  rich 
colors  of  the  gorgeous  East,  as  in  its  proper  ele- 
ment, while  his  ever  alert  humor  makes  the  most 
of  the  sharp  and  strange  contrasts  of  Oriental  life 
and  society.  The  hero  of  the  strange  and  terrible 
drama,  or,  rather,  series  of  dramas,  unfolded  with 
such  spirit,  skill,  and  vividness  in  Janicsdrok  ve"g- 


IV  PREFACE 

napjai,  is  Ali  Pasha  of  Janina,  certainly  one  of  the 
most  brilliant,  picturesque,  and,  it  must  be  added, 
capable  ruffians  that  even  Turkish  history  can 
produce.  Manifold  and  monstrous  as  were  Ali's 
crimes,  his  astonishing  ability  and  splendid  courage 
lend  a  sort  of  savage  sublimity  even  to  his  blood- 
stained career,  and,  indeed,  the  dogged  valor  with 
which  the  octogenarian  warrior  defended  himself  at 
the  last  in  his  stronghold  against  the  whole  might 
of  the  Ottoman  Empire  is  almost  without  a  parallel 
in  history. 

With  such  a  hero,  it  is  evident  that  the  book 
must  abound  in  stirring  and  even  tremendous 
scenes ;  but,  though  primarily  a  novel  of  incident, 
it  contains  not  a  few  fine  studies  of  Oriental  char- 
acter, both  Turkish  and  Greek,  by  an  absolutely  im- 
partial observer,  who  can  detect  the  worth  of  the 
Osmanli  in  the  midst  of  his  apathy  and  brutality, 
and  who,  although  sympathetically  inclined  towards 
the  Hellenes,  is  by  no  means  blind  to  their  craft 
and  double-dealing,  happily  satirized  in  the  comic 
character  of  Leonidas  Argyrocantharides. 

Finally,  I  have  taken  the  liberty  to  alter  the 
title  of  the  story.  Janicsdrok  ve'gnapjai  ( The  Last 
Days  of  the  Janissaries]  is  too  glaringly  inapt  to 
pass  muster,  inasmuch  as  the  rebellion  and  annihila- 
tion of  that  dangerous  corps  is  a  mere  inessential 
episode  at  the  end  of  the  story.  I  have,  therefore, 
given  the  place  of  honor  on  the  title-page  to  Ali 
Pasha — the  Lion  of  Janina. 

I  have  added  a  glossary  of  the  Turkish  words 
used  by  the  author  in  these  pages. 

R.  NISBET  BAIN. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.  THE  CAVERNS  OF  SELEUCIA i 

II.  EMINAH 19 

III.  A  TURKISH  PARADISE 45 

IV.  GASKHO  BEY 62 

V.  A  MAN  IN  THE  MIDST  OF  DANGERS 72 

VI.  THE  LION  IN  THE  Fox's  SKIN 78 

VII.  THE  ALBANIAN  FAMILY 105 

VIII.  THE  PEN  OF  MAHMOUD no 

IX.  THE  CIRCASSIAN  AND  His  FAMILY 129 

X.  THE  AVENGER 160 

XI.  THE  FLOWERS  OF  THE  GARDEN  OF  BEGTASH  .     .  187 

XII.  THE  SHIPWRECK  OF  LEONIDAS 198 

XIII.  A  BALL  IN  THE  SERAGLIO 213 

XIV.  KURSHID  PASHA 238 

XV.  CARETTO 244 

XVI.  EMINAH 252 

XVII.  THE  SILVER  PEDESTAL  IN  FRONT  OF  THE  SERAGLIO  262 

XVIII.  THE  BROKEN  SWORDS 275 

GLOSSARY  OF  TURKISH  WORDS 293 


THE   LION  OF  JANINA 


CHAPTER  I 
THE   CAVERNS   OF   SELEUCIA 

A  SAVAGE,  barren,  inhospitable  region  lies  before 
us,  the  cavernous  valley  of  Seleucia — a  veritable 
home  for  an  anchorite,  for  there  is  nothing  therein 
to  remind  one  of  the  living  world ;  the  whole  dis- 
trict resembles  a  vast  ruined  tomb,  with  its  base 
overgrown  by  green  weeds.  Here  is  everything 
which  begets  gloom — the  blackest  religious  fanat- 
icism, the  darkest  monstrosities  of  superstition — 
while  an  eternal  malediction  seems  to  brood  like 
a  heavy  mist  over  this  region,  created  surely  by 
God's  left  hand,  scattering  abroad  gigantic  rocky 
fragments,  smiting  the  earth  with  unfruitfulness, 
and  making  it  uninhabitable  by  the  children  of 
men. 

Man  rarely  visits  these  parts.  And,  indeed,  why 
should  he  come,  or  what  should  he  seek  there? 
There  is  absolutely  nothing  in  the  whole  region 
that  is  dear  to  the  heart  of  man.  Even  the  wild 
beast  makes  no  abiding  lair  for  himself  in  that  val- 
ley. Only  now  and  then,  in  the  burning  days  of 


2  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

summer,  a  lion  of  the  wilderness,  flying  from  before 
the  sultry  heat,  may,  perchance,  come  there  to  de- 
vour his  captured  prey,  and  then,  when  he  is  well 
gorged,  pursue  his  way,  wrangling  as  he  goes  with 
the  echo  of  his  own  roar. 

Solitary  travellers  of  an  enterprising  turn  of 
mind  do  occasionally  visit  this  dreary  wilderness  ; 
but  so  crushing  an  impression  does  it  make  on  all 
who  have  the  courage  to  gaze  upon  it,  that  they 
scarce  wait  to  explore  the  historic  ground,  but  hast- 
en from  it  as  fast  as  their  legs  can  carry  them. 

What  is  there  to  see  there,  after  all  ?  A  battered- 
down  wall,  as  to  which  none  can  say  who  built  it, 
or  why  it  was  built,  or  who  destroyed  it.  A  tall 
stone  column,  the  column  of  the  worthy  Simon 
Stylites,  who  piled  it  up,  stone  upon  stone,  year 
after  year,  with  his  own  hands,  being  wont  to  sit 
there  for  days  together  with  arms  extended  in  the 
shape  of  a  cross,  bowing  himself  thousands  and 
thousands  of  times  a  day  till  his  head  touched  his 
feet.  The  northern  and  southern  sides  of  the  val- 
ley are  cut  off  from  the  rest  of  the  world  by  gigan- 
tic masses  of  rocks  as  steep  and  solid  as  the  bastions 
of  a  fortress  ;  only  towards  their  summit,  at  an  ele- 
vation of  some  three  to  four  hundred  yards,  is  a  lit- 
tle strip  of  green  vegetation  visible. 

Darkly  visible  at  intervals  in  this  long  and  steep 
rocky  wall  are  the  mouths  of  a  series  of  caverns,  of 
various  sizes,  all  close  together.  It  looks  as  if  some 
monstrous  antediluvian  race  had  cut  two  or  three 
stories  of  doors  and  windows  into  the  living  rock, 
in  order  to  make  themselves  palaces  to  dwell  in. 

The  walls  of  these  caverns  are  so  rugged,  their 
bases  are  so  irregular,  that  it  is  scarcely  conceiva- 


THE    CAVERNS    OP    SELEUCIA  3 

ble  that  they  could  be  the  work  of  human  hands, 
unless,  indeed,  the  arched  concavities  of  the  chasms 
and  the  regular  consecutiveness  of  the  series  may 
be  assumed  to  bear  witness  to  the  wonder-working 
power  of  finite  forces. 

Three  of  the  entrances  to  these  caverns  have  all 
the  loftiness  of  triumphal  arches  ;  nay,  one  of  them, 
carved  in  the  base  of  the  rock,  is  so  exceptionally 
vast  that  it  rather  resembles  the  nave  of  a  huge 
church,  and  is  said  to  penetrate  the  whole  mountain 
to  the  sea  beyond.  It  is  said  that  if  any  one  has 
the  courage  to  attempt  the  journey,  he  will  dis- 
cover mysterious  hieroglyphics  carved  on  the  walls. 
Who  could  have  been  the  authors  of  this  unknown 
runic  language?  The  Chaldeans  perhaps,  or  the 
worshippers  of  Mithra.  What  hidden  secrets,  what 
human  memorials  are  enshrined  in  these  symbols? 
That  question  must  remain  forever  without  an  an- 
swer. 

Most  probably  this  valley  was  used  as  a  burial- 
place  by  some  long-vanished  nation,  whose  tombs 
have  survived  them,  making  the  whole  region  still 
more  dreadful ;  the  gaping  crevices  of  the  rocks 
seem  to  proclaim,  as  from  a  hundred  open  throats, 
that  here  an  extinct  race  has  found  its  last  resting- 
place. 

Moreover,  the  largest  cavern  of  all  has  the  unusu- 
al property  of  sometimes  emitting  whistling  sounds 
like  interrupted  human  voices.  The  shepherds  on 
the  mountain  summits  listen  terror-stricken  to  this 
bellowing  of  its  rocky  throat.  At  first  it  resembles 
the  buzzing  of  imprisoned  wasps,  but  the  din  grad- 
ually gathers  force  and  volume  till  it  seems  as  if 
the  demons  of  the  wind  had  lost  their  way  within 


4  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

the  cavern,  and  were  roaring  tumultuously  in  their 
endeavors  to  find  an  exit.  This  noise  is  generally 
followed  by  the  blast  of  the  simoon,  which  no  doubt 
penetrates  into  the  cavern  through  a  gap  on  the 
other  side,  and  thus  gives  rise  to  the  mysterious 
voices  of  the  valley. 

But  not  on  these  occasions  only  ;  at  other  seasons 
also  the  cavern  is  wont  to  speak.  It  happens  now 
and  then  that  a  shepherd,  more  foolhardy  than  his 
fellows,  ventures  into  the  hollow  of  the  cavern  to 
light  a  fire,  and,  full  of  bravado,  provokes  the  dzliin 
of  the  cavern  to  appear,  till  the  cavern  suddenly 
re-echoes  his  voice  ;  but  it  does  'not  re-echo  the 
words  he  utters,  but  replies  in  a  soft,  low  accent  to 
the  insolent  youth,  bidding  him  withdraw  and  cease 
to  mock  God's  creatures. 

On  another  occasion  an  adulterous  woman  and 
her  paramour  strolled  towards  the  spot  with  the 
intent  of  using  the  deep  darkness  as  the  cloak  for 
their  sinful  joys  ;  but  what  terror  filled  the  guilty 
lovers  when  their  sweet  whispering  was  interrupted 
by  a  voice  which  was  neither  near  nor  far,  and  be- 
longed neither  to  man  nor  spirit,  but  whose  cold 
sigh  turned  their  hot  blood  into  ice  as  it  whispered, 
"Allah  is  everywhere  present !" 

Once,  too,  some  robbers  were  lying  in  wait  for 
their  comrades,  whom  they  intended  to  murder  in 
that  place,  when  a  roaring  began  in  the  cave  which 
seemed  to  make  the  very  welkin  ring,  and  the 
murderers  clearly  distinguished  the  terrible  words : 
"  The  eye  of  Allah  is  upon  you,  and  the  flames  of 
Morhut  are  burning  for  your  souls  !"  whereupon, 
insane  with  fright,  they  rushed  from  the  cave. 

Every  one  who  lived  near  the  place  knew  of,  and 


THE    CAVERNS    OF   SELEUCIA  5 

believed  in,  the  dzhin  of  the  cavern,  who,  they  said, 
harmed  not  the  good,  but  persecuted  evil-doers. 

But  it  was  not  only  terror-stricken  hearts  who 
knew  of  the  voice  of  the  invisible  dzhin — crushed 
and  bleeding  hearts  likewise  repaired  thither.  And 
the  invisible  dzhin  read  their  secrets  ;  they  had  no 
need  to  acquaint  him  with  their  griefs,  and  he  gave 
them  good  counsel,  and,  for  the  most  part,  sent 
them  away  comforted.  Doubtless  anybody  else 
might  have  given  them  similar  counsels  ;  but  if  the 
advice  had  come  from  ordinary  men,  the  suppliants 
would  not  perhaps  have  welcomed  it  with  such  en- 
thusiasm, or  have  turned  it  to  such  good  account. 

And  people  often  came  thither  to  inquire  into 
the  future  ;  and  the  invisible  being,  it  was  found, 
could  distinguish  between  those  who  came  to  him 
in  real  anguish  of  mind  and  those  whom  only  curi- 
osity had  attracted  thither,  or  who  merely  wished 
to  prove  him.  To  the  latter  he  made  no  answer, 
but  to  the  former  he  often  spoke  in  prophetic  par- 
ables, whose  deeply  figurative  meaning  was  fre- 
quently fulfilled  word  for  word. 

The  superstitious  common  folk  made  a  merit  of 
sacrificing  to  this  unknown  being.  The  dwellers 
round  about  made  a  point  of  living  on  good  terms 
with  him,  took  care  not  to  provoke  him  with  vain 
words,  did  not  fly  to  him  at  every  trifle  ;  nay,  on 
one  occasion,  the  Kadi*  of  Seleucia  even  laid  by 
the  heels  a  couple  of  wanton  rascals  who  were 
caught  throwing  stones  into  the  cavern. 

From  the  mouth  of  the  cave  inward  extended  a 


*  For  this  and  all  other  Turkish  words  see  the  glossary  at  the 
end  of  this  book. 


6  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

sort  of  staircase  consisting  of  about  forty  steps,  ter- 
minating at  a  point  whither  the  light  of  day  scarce- 
ly ever  reached.  Here  stood  a  huge  stone,  not  un- 
like a  rude  altar,  in  the  midst  of  which  was  a  slight 
hollow.  This  hollow  the  pious  inhabitants  of  the 
district  used  to  fill  with  rice  or  millet,  and  on  re- 
turning next  day  they  would  see  that  the  dshin  had 
removed  it  from  thence,  and,  by  way  of  payment, 
had  left  a  small  silver  coin  in  this  natural  basin — a 
coin  belonging  to  that  old  silver  money  which  had 
been  struck  in  the  brilliant  days  of  the  Turkish 
Empire,  and  was  worth  thrice  as  much  as  the  pres- 
ent coinage.  Thus  the  dshin  would  take  nothing 
gratis,  but  paid  for  everything  in  ready  money. 

Those  who  wished  to  speak  with  him  had  to  pen- 
etrate into  the  depths  of  the  cave  where  no  day- 
light was  visible,  for  he  was  only  to  be  found  where 
the  darkness  was  complete.  If  any  one  went  with 
sword  or  dagger  he  got  no  answer  at  all.  And  a 
visitor  standing  alone  there  in  the  darkness  was  as 
plainly  visible  to  the  dshin  as  if  the  glare  of  noon- 
day were  beating  full  upon  him  ;  not  a  change  of 
countenance  was  hidden  from  this  mysterious  be- 
ing. So  they  more  readily  believed  that  he  who 
could  thus  see  through  the  darkness  of  earth  could 
also  see  through  the  darkness  of  human  hearts  and 
the  darkness  of  the  unrevealed  future. 

This  marvel  had  now  been  notorious  for  fifty 
years,  the  ordinary  span  of  human  life,  and  princes, 
pashas,  generals,  wise  men,  priests,  ulemas,  were  in 
the  habit  of  visiting  the  abode  of  the  dshin,  who 
seemed  to  know  about  everything  that  was  going 
on  in  the  world  above.  To  many  he  prophesied 
death,  and  to  those  who  pleased  him  not  he  fore- 


THE   CAVERNS   OF   SELEUCIA  7 

told  the  Nemesis  that  was  to  come  upon  them  as  a 
reward  for  their  iniquities. 

In  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and 
nineteen,  at  the  season  immediately  following  the 
raging  of  the  simoon,  it  chanced  that  a  pirate  ship 
sailed  into  the  haven  of  Suda,  whence  the  magnifi- 
cent ruins  of  the  ancient  Seleucia  are  still  to  be 
seen.  The  corsair  carried  the  French  flag,  but  her 
crew  consisted  entirely  of  Albanians.  The  deck 
was  encumbered  with  wreckage,  cast  down  upon 
it  by  the  happily  weathered  tempest,  and  this  the 
crew  were  energetically  engaged  in  removing  ;  but 
every  one  on  shore  was  astounded  to  see  her  there 
at  all,  much  more  in  such  trim  condition,  for  she 
had  lost  neither  mast  nor  sail.  But  then,  after  the 
manner  of  corsairs  in  general,  she  was  very  much 
better  equipped  with  both  masts  and  sails  than 
ships  of  ordinary  tonnage  are  wont  to  be.  In  the 
same  hour  that  the  ship  cast  anchor  the  largest 
of  her  boats  was  lowered,  and  manned  by  four 
and  twenty  well-armed  Trinariots.  Every  one  of 
these  stout  fellows  carried  orders  of  merit  on  his 
cheek,  the  scars  of  many  a  battle,  which  accentu- 
ated the  savage  sternness  of  their  weather-beaten 
faces. 

A  little  old  man  descended  after  them  into  the 
boat ;  presently  his  horse  was  also  let  down  by 
means  of  a  crane.  This  was  the  officer  in  com- 
mand. He  was  a  middling-sized  but  very  muscular 
old  fellow,  already  beyond  his  seventieth  and  not 
very  far  from  his  eightieth  year  ;  but  he  was  as 
vigorous  now  both  in  mind  and  body  as  he  had 
been  when  his  beard,  which  now  swept  across  his 


THE   LION   OF  JANINA 

breast  like  the  wing  of  a  swan,  was  as  dark  as  the 
raven's  plume. 

His  broad  shoulders  spoke  of  extraordinary 
strength,  while  the  firm  expression  of  his  face,  the 
flashing  lustre  of  his  eyes,  and  his  calm  and  valiant 
look,  testified  to  the  fact  that  this  strength  was 
squandered  upon  no  coward  soul. 

Some  stout  rowing  brought  the  boat  at  last  near 
to  the  shore,  but  not  all  the  efforts  of  the  men 
could  bring  her  to  land ;  the  wash  of  the  sea  was 
so  great  that  the  foam  -  crested  waves  again  and 
again  drove  the  boat  back  from  the  shore. 

At  a  sign  from  the  old  man  three  of  the  ship's 
crew  leaped  into  the  waves  in  order  to  drag  after 
them  the  boat's  hawser,  but  the  sea  tore  it  out  of 
the  hands  of  all  three  as  easily  as  a  wild  bull  would 
toss  a  pack  of  children. 

Then  the  old  man  vaulted  upon  his  steed,  kick- 
ing the  stirrups  aside,  and  leaped  among  the  churn- 
ing waves.  Twice  the  horse  was  jostled  back  by 
the  assault  of  the  foaming  billows,  but  at  the  third 
attempt  the  shore  was  reached.  The  people  on  the 
shore  said  it  was  a  miracle ;  but  he,  wasting  no 
words  upon  any  one,  directed  his  way  all  alone  along 
the  shore  of  the  haven,  and  leaving  behind  him  the 
lofty  turreted  row  of  bastions — which  crowns  the 
edge  of  the  rocky  promontory,  encircles  the  town, 
and  hangs  upon  the  shoulders  of  the  hill  like  an 
ancient  and  gigantic  necklace  —  picked  his  way 
among  the  lofty,  scattered  bowlders,  and,  unescort- 
ed as  he  was,  quickly  disappeared  from  view  amid 
the  wilderness. 

He  had  scarcely  proceeded  more  than  half  an 
hour  among  the  fig  and  olive  trees  which  covered 


THE    CAVERNS    OF   SELEUCIA  9 

the  slopes  of  the  hills,  and  whose  scorched  and 
withered  leaves  marked  the  passage  of  the  burn- 
ing wind,  when  he  arrived  at  the  place  he  sought. 
It  was  a  crazy,  tumble-down  hut,  whose  shapeless 
mass  was  so  clumsily  compounded  of  wood,  stone, 
and  mud,  that  a  swallow  would  have  been  ashamed 
to  own  it,  let  alone  a  beaver,  whose  ordinary  habita- 
tion is  an  architectural  masterpiece  compared  with 
it.  Nature,  however,  had  been  gracious  to  this 
shanty,  and  clothed  it  with  creeping  plants,  which 
nearly  hid  away  all  the  superflous  cracks  and  crev- 
ices which  the  architect  had  left  behind  him. 

It  was  here  that  the  new-comer  dismounted  from 
his  horse,  tied  it  to  a  tree,  and,  proceeding  to  the 
latchless  door,  amused  himself  by  reading  the  scrawl 
which  had  been  written  on  the  outside  of  it,  and 
was,  as  usual,  one  of  those  sacred  texts  which  the 
Turks  love  to  see  over  their  door-posts  :  "Accursed 
be  he  who  disturbs  a  singing-bird  !" 

The  stranger  fell  a  listening.  Surely  there  was 
no  singing-bird  here,  he  thought.  Then  he  went  on 
reading  what  followed  :  "  He  who  knocks  at  the 
gate  of  him  who  prays  will  knock  in  vain  at  the 
gate  of  Paradise." 

The  stranger  did  not  take  the  trouble  to  knock; 
he  simply  kicked  the  door  down. 

Within  was  kneeling  an  anchorite  of  the  order  of 
Erdbuhar  on  a  piece  of  matting.  He  was  naked 
to  the  girdle,  and  before  him  stood  a  wooden  tub 
full  of  fresh  water.  He  was  just  finishing  his  ab- 
lutions. 

He  did  not  seem  to  observe  the  violent  inroad 
of  the  stranger,  but  concluded  his  religious  exer- 
cises with  great  fervor.  First  of  all  he  washed 


10  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

his  hands,  reciting  thirty  times  the  sacred  words, 
"Blessed  be  God,  Who  hath  given  to  water  its 
purifying  power,  and  hath  revealed  the  true  faith 
to  us !"  Next  he  thrice  conveyed  water  to  his 
mouth  in  his  right  palm,  and  prayed,  "  O  Lord  !  O 
Allah  !  refresh  me  with  the  water  Thou  didst  give 
to  Thy  Prophet  Muhammad  in  Paradise,  which  is 
more  fragrant  than  balm,  whiter  than  milk,  and 
sweeter  than  honey,  and  satisfies  eternally  those 
who  pine  with  thirst !"  Then,  with  the  palm  of  his 
hand,  he  cast  water  upon  his  nostrils,  and  ex- 
claimed, fervently,  "  O  Lord  !  cause  me  to  smell  the 
perfume  of  Paradise,  which  is  sweeter  than  musk 
and  ambergris,  and  suffer  me  not  to  inhale  the  ac- 
cursed fumes  of  hell !"  Then,  filling  both  palms 
with  water  and  well  washing  his  face,  he  said  these 
words,  "  Purify  my  face,  O  Lord,  like  as  Thou  wilt 
purify  the  faces  of  Thy  prophets  and  servants  on 
the  great  Day  of  Judgment !"  But  even  this  did 
not  suffice,  for  now  he  put  water  in  his  right  palm 
again,  and,  letting  it  run  down  his  elbows,  he 
sighed,  "  Lord,  suffer  me  at  the  last  day  to  hold  in 
my  right  hand,  which  is  the  hand  of  Thine  elect, 
the  book  of  my  good  deeds,  and  admit  me  to  Thy 
Paradise  !"  With  that  he  dipped  his  head  into  the 
tub  of  water,  but  so  as  to  keep  his  mouth  clear  of 
it,  and  spake  in  this  wise,  "  O  Lord,  when  I  appear 
before  Thee,  encompass  me  with  Thy  mercies,  and 
crush  not  my  head  beneath  the  fiery  wreath  of  my 
sins,  but  adorn  it  with  the  golden  crown  of  my 
merits !"  Then  came  the  turn  of  his  ears,  the 
worthy  man  crying  the  while,  with  unction,  "  Grant, 
O  Lord,  that  mine  ears  may  hear,  for  ever  and 
ever,  those  joyous  sounds  which  are  written  in  the 


THE  CAVERNS  OF  SELEUCIA  II 

Kuran  !"  This  accomplished,  he  sprinkled  his  neck 
and  throat,  suitably  exclaiming,  "  O  Lord,  deliver 
me  from  those  fetters  which  will  be  cast  upon  the 
necks  of  the  accursed  !"  After  which  pious  ejacu- 
lation he  sat  down  on  the  ground,  and,  reverently 
washing  his  right  foot,  exclaimed,  "  O  Lord,  suffer 
not  my  feet  to  slip  on  the  bridge  of  Alserat  which 
leads  across  hell  to  heaven  !"  Then  he  cleansed 
thoroughly  his  left  foot  also,  and  sighed,  "  May  the 
Lord  forgive  me  my  trespasses  and  listen  to  my 
supplications !" 

And  the  honest  dervish  did  not  utter  all  these 
pious  ejaculations  in  a  low  mumble,  but  in  an  in- 
telligible, exalted  voice,  as  becomes  an  orthodox 
Mussulman,  who  does  not  consider  it  a  shameful 
thing  to  pray  to  God  in  the  presence  of  men. 

After  that  he  took  up  the  tub  and,  carrying  it 
out,  sprinkled  the  water  it  contained  over  the  wild 
flowers  growing  there,  blessing  them  severally  and 
collectively ;  then  he  filled  it  full  again  with  fresh 
water  from  the  spring,  and  bringing  it  back  into 
the  hut  and  turning  the  mat  over,  placed  the  tub 
full  of  water  on  it,  whereupon  the  stranger  im- 
mediately divested  himself  of  his  slippers  and  up- 
per kaftan,  unwound  his  turban,  removed  his  red 
fez  from  his  head,  and  proceeded  to  perform  his 
ablutions  also  in  the  self-same  manner. 

When  he  had  finished  he  kissed  the  hand  of  the 
dervish,  and  when  the  latter  drew  from  his  girdle 
a  long  manuscript  reaching  to  the  very  ground, 
and  began,  from  its  eighty  sections,  to  laud  and 
magnify  the  eighty  properties  of  Allah,  the  stranger 
repeated  them  after  him  with  great  unction,  and, 
at  the  end  of  each  one  of  them,  intoned  with  him 


12  .      THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

twice  over  the  verse,  "  La  illah,  il  Allah,  Muhammad 
roszul  Allah  !" — in  the  chanting  of  which  he  was  as 
practised  as  any  muezzin. 

All  these  pious  practices  were  accomplished  with 
the  utmost  devotion;  but  when  the  new-comer 
arose  from  his  place,  the  expression  of  lowliness 
vanished  from  his  features  and  he  reassumed  his 
former  commanding  look,  while  the  dervish  now 
humbly  bowed  down  before  him  to  the  very  earth 
and  murmured  : 

"What  are  my  lord's  commands  to  his  servant?" 

The  stranger  let  him  lie  there  and  slowly  raised 
his  sword. 

"Art  thou,"  cried  he,  "  that  dervish  of  Erdbuhar* 
to  whom  I  despatched  a  fakir  of  the  Nimetullahitas, 
who  dwelleth  in  Janina?" 

"Thy  servant  is  that  man." 

The  stranger  thereupon,  with  his  right  hand, 
drew  a  dagger  from  his  girdle,  and  with  his  left 
hand  a  purse. 

"  Dost  thou  see  this  dagger  and  this  purse  ?"  said 
he.  "  In  the  purse  are  a  thousand  sequins  ;  on  the 
blade  of  this  sword  is  the  blood  of  at  least  as  many 
murdered  men.  I  ask  thee  not — Dost  thou  recog- 
nize me  ?  or  dost  thou  know  my  name  ?  Maybe 
thou  -dost  know — for  thou  knowest  all  things — and, 
if  so,  thou  dost  also  know  that  none  hath  ever  be- 
trayed me  on  whom  I  have  not  wreaked  my  ven- 


*  The  orders  of  Erdbuhar  and  Nimetullahita  are  the  severest  of 
all  the  Turkish  religious  fraternities  :  the  former  fast  so  rigorously 
twice  a  week  that  they  do  not  even  swallow  their  saliva ;  the  latter 
observe  the  fast  only  during  their  year  of  probation,  after  which 
they  are  free  to  return  to  the  joys  of  this  world. 


THE    CAVERNS   OF    SELEUCIA  13 

geance.'  If,  therefore,  thou  dost  want  a  reward, 
listen  ;  but  if  chastisement,  speak  !" 

The  dervish  raised  his  hand  to  his  ear  to  signify 
that  he  would  prefer  to  listen. 

"  Arise,  then  !  take  my  horse's  bridle,  and  lead  me 
to  that  cavern  where  dwelleth  the  dzhin  of  proph- 
ecy. Dost  thou  know  him  ?" 

"  I  know  him,  my  master,  but  go  to  him  I  will  not, 
for  he  is  wroth  with  me.  He  loves  not  the  dervishes, 
because  they  would  always  be  teaching.  If  I  go  to 
him  he  throws  stones  at  me  from  out  of  the  cavern, 
or  leads  me  into  deep  pitfalls.  Therefore,  if  thou  so 
desire  it,  I  will  lead  thee  thither  ;  but  I  would  not 
go  with  thee  if  I  had  as  many  heads  upon  my  shoul- 
ders for  thy  sword  to  sever  as  there  are  sequins  in 
that  purse." 

"  There  is  no  need  of  that.  Thou  canst  remain 
outside  and  hold  my  horse." 

And  with  that  the  herculean  old  man  flung  him- 
self haughtily  on  his  horse,  and  the  dervish,  seiz- 
ing the  steed's  bridle,  began  to  lead  him  along 
the  mountain  path  among  the  rugged  rocks  and 
bowlders. 

The  moon  was  already  high  in  the  heavens  when 
they  reached  the  mouth  of  the  cavern. 

Looking  back  upon  the  country  whence  they 
came,  the  region  seemed  more  desolate  than  ever. 
In  front,  the  savage,  natural  ruins  ;  behind,  the  black 
cedar  forests,  where  thick  foliage  cast  night-black 
shadows  even  at  noonday  ;  on  each  side,  the  end- 
lessly sublime  masses  of  rocks,  which  stood  out  still 
vaster  in  the  moonlight.  The  caverns  looked  still 
blacker  at  night,  and  the  rock  and  ruins  more  ster- 
ile ;  but,  night  and  day  alike,  the  place  was  deserted. 


14  THE    LION    OP   JANINA 

On  reaching  the  cavern  of  the  dzJiin,  the  oid  man 
dismounted  from  his  horse  and,  bidding  the  der- 
vish stand  and  hold  it  till  he  returned,  disappeared  in 
the  cavern  without  the  slightest  hesitation. 

He  could  only  grope  his  way,  step  by  step,  through 
the  blinding  darkness  ;  cautiously  he  advanced,  but 
without  fear.  He  tested  the  ground  in  front  of  him 
as  he  advanced,  with  one  hand  over  his  eyes  and  the 
other  on  the  hilt  of  his  sword.  It  must,  indeed,  be 
a  resolutely  wicked  spirit  that  would  venture  to 
attack  him. 

Every  now  and  then  a  bat  sped  rapidly  past  him, 
close  to  his  ears,  with  a  sound  like  a  mocking  titter  ; 
at  other  times  he  trod  upon  some  cold,  moving  body. 
But  what  cared  he  for  these?  The  deep  silence 
which  encircled  him  was  far  more  terrible  than  all 
the  voices  of  hell ;  and  not  even  the  darkness  terri- 
fied him,  for  his  powerful  voice  now  pierced  that 
subterranean  stillness  as  with  a  sword. 

"  I  summon  thee,  thou  spirit,  whether  thou  art 
good  or  evil,  whom  Allah  permits  to  hold  discourse 
with  living  men — I  summon  thee  to  speak  with  me!" 

"  I  am  even  now  beside  thee,"  a  voice  suddenly 
whispered.  It  was  low  and  hollow,  just  as  if  the 
atmosphere  of  the  cavern  were  speaking. 

The  stranger  made  a  clutch  after  the  voice,  as  if 
his  audacious  hand  would  have  seized  the  spirit ; 
but  he  found  nothing.  It  was  a  voice  without  a 
shape. 

!'  Speak  to  me  !"  cried  the  old  man,  in  a  voice  that 
never  quavered.  "  Dost  thou  know  my  fate  ?" 

"  I  know  it,"  answered  the  invisible  voice  ;  "  thou 
art  a  poor  man  who  hast  lost  what  thou  hadst,  and 
what  thou  now  hast  is  not  thine." 


THE  CAVERNS  OF  SELEUCIA  15 

"  Thou  art  a  senseless  spirit,"  growled  the  stran- 
ger. "Go  back  to  thy  tomb  and  slumber;  I  will 
inquire  nothing  more  of  thee.  Thou  dost  not  even 
know  my  present  fate ;  how  canst  thou  know  my 
future  ?  Go  back  to  thy  hole,  I  say,  and  sleep  in 
peace." 

"I  know  thee,"  continued  the  voice,  "and  I  have 
spoken  the  truth.  Do  not  they  call  thee  AH  Tepe- 
lenti?" 

The  stranger  was  amazed.  "That  is  indeed  my 
name,"  he  answered. 

"Wert  thou  not  a  fugitive  yesterday,  and  Avilt 
thou  not  be  dust  and  ashes  to-morrow  ?" 

"  True  ;  but  that  yesterday  was  eighty  years  ago  ; 
and  who  shall  say  when  to-morrow  will  be  ?" 

"Thou  knowest  that  here  there  is  neither  morn- 
ing nor  evening,"  answered  the  voice.  "To  me 
yesterday  was  when  I  last  saw  the  sun,  and  to- 
morrow will  be  when  I  see  it  again.  Ali  Tepelenti, 
Lord  of  Janina,  thou  art  poorer  than  the  lowliest 
Mussulman  Avho  girds  himself  with  a  girdle  of  hair, 
for  thou  hast  lost  everything  which  thou  didst  ac- 
count precious.  Thy  kinsmen,  who  were  for  thy  de- 
fence, thou  hast  slain  ;  thy  mother,  who  loved  thee, 
thou  hast  strangled  ;  thy  right  hand  has  pulled  down 
the  house  which  thou  didst  build  up  ;  thy  glory,  in 
which  thou  didst  exalt  thyself,  has  become  a  curse 
to  thee ;  and  thou  hast  made  bitter  haters  of  those 
who  loved  thee  best." 

"  So  it  is.  I  know  what  I  have  done.  I  repent 
me  of  nothing.  The  hare  nibbles  the  flower,  the 
vulture  seizes  the  hare,  the  hunter  slays  the  vulture, 
the  lion  fells  the  hunter,  the  worm  devours  the  lion. 
All  of  us  turn  to  earth.  Allah  is  mighty,  and  He 


1 6  THE   LION   OP   JANINA 

orders  it  so.  What  am  I?  Only  a  bigger  worm 
than  the  rest.  Who  shall  strive  with  God  ?  What 
is  my  fate  in  the  future  ?" 

"  But  yesterday  thou  wert  younger  than  thy  new- 
born son,  to-morrow  thou  shalt  die  older  than  thy 
oldest  ancestors." 

"  Speak  more  plainly.  I  perceive  the  meaning  of 
thy  words  as  little  as  I  perceive  thyself." 

" '  He  who  sins  with  the  sword  shall  perish  with 
the  sword,'  saith  Allah.  He  who  sins  with  love, 
shall  perish  by  love.  Thou  hast  two  hands,  the 
right  and  the  left ;  thou  hast  two  swords,  one  cov- 
ered with  gold  and  one  with  silver  ;  thou  hast  three 
hundred  wives  in  thy  harem,  but  only  one  in  thy 
heart ;  thou  hast  twelve  sons,  but  only  one  whom 
thou  lovest.  Look,  now  !  Take  good  heed  of  thy 
life,  for  thy  death  lieth  in  what  is  nearest  to  thee  ; 
thine  own  weapon,  thine  own  child,  thine  own 
property,  thine  own  two  hands,  shall  one  day  slay 
thee." 

"Mashallah!  Death  is  inevitable.  Tell  me  but 
one  thing.  Shall  I  one  day  pass  in  triumph  through 
the  gates  of  the  seraglio  at  Stambul  ?" 

"  Thou  shalt.  Thou  shalt  stand  there  on  a  silver 
pedestal  in  the  face  of  the  rejoicing  multitude." 

"  When  ?" 

"That  day  will  come  when  thou  shalt  be  in  two 
places  at  the  same  time,  in  Janina  and  in  Stambul ; 
the  days  to  come  will  explain  it." 

"  One  word  more.  Wherefore  didst  thou  mention 
that  woman  whom  I  love  best  ?" 

"  She  will  be  the  first  to  betray  thee." 

"Accursed  one!"  roared  AH,  drawing  his  sword 
and  madly  striking  in  the  direction  of  the  voice. 


THE  CAVERNS  OF  SELEUCIA  17 

The  sword  hissed  fiercely  through  the  vacant  air, 
and  the  next  moment  the  voice  replied  from  a  re- 
spectable distance  : 

"  It  has  happened  already." 

"  This  is  a  dream,  all  a  dream  !"  moaned  Ali. 

"  'Tis  no  dream  ;  thou  art  wide  awake,"  cried  the 
mysterious  voice. 

"  If  it  be  no  dream,  give  me  a  sign  that  I  may 
know  before  I  depart  hence  that  I  have  not  been 
dreaming." 

"  First  put  thy  sword  into  its  sheath." 

"  I  have  done  so,"  said  Ali ;  but  he  lied,  for  he 
had  only  slipped  it  into  his  girdle. 

"  Into  the  sheath,  I  say,"  cried  the  voice. 

It  was  with  a  tremor  that  Ali  felt  that  this  being 
could  distinguish  his  slightest  movement  in  the  dark. 

"And  now  stretch  forth  thy  hand!"  cried  the 
voice.  It  was  now  quite  close  to  him. 

Ali  stretched  forth  his  hand,  and  the  same  instant 
he  felt  a  vigorous,  manly  hand  seize  his  own  in  a 
grasp  of  steel ;  so  strong,  so  cruel  was  the  pressure 
that  the  blood  started  from  the  tips  of  his  fingers. 

At  last  the  invisible  being  let  go,  and  said  in  a 
whisper  as  it  did  so  : 

"  Not  a  muscle  of  thy  face  moved  under  the  press- 
ure of  my  hand  ;  only  Tepelenti  could  so  have  en- 
dured." 

"  And  there  is  but  one  man  living  who  could  press 
my  hand  like  that,"  replied  Ali.  "  His  name  was 
Behram,  the  son  of  Halil  Patrona,*  who,  forty  years 

*  The  extraordinary  adventures  of  this  Mussulman  reformer  are 
recorded  in  another  of  Jokai's  Turkish  stories,  A  feher  rdzsa  (The 
White  Jfose). 
2 


1 8  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

ago,  was  my  companion  in  warfare,  and  has  since 
disappeared.  Who  art  thou  ?" 

"Aleikum  unallah  !"*  said  the  voice,  instead  of 
replying. 

"Who  art  thou?"  again  cried  Ali,  advancing  a 
step. 

"  Aleikum  unallah  !"  was  the  parting  salutation 
of  the  already  far-distant  voice. 

The  mighty  pasha  turned  back  in  a  reverie,  and 
when  he  got  back  into  the  moonlight,  he  still  saw 
plainly  on  his  hand  the  drops  of  blood  which  that 
powerful  grasp  had  caused  to  leap  forth  from  the 
tips  of  his  fingers. 

*  "  God  be  with  thee  !" 


CHAPTER   II 

EMINAH 

AND  now  for  a  story,  a  marvellous  story,  that 
would  not  be  out  of  place  in  a  fairy  tale  !  Away  to 
another  clime  where  the  very  sunbeams  and  blos- 
soms, where  the  very  beating  of  loving  hearts,  dif- 
fer from  what  we  are  accustomed  to. 

In  whichever  direction  we  look  around  us,  we 
shall  see  the  land  of  the  gods  rising  up  before  us 
in  classical  sublimity,  the  mountains  of  Hellas,  the 
triumphal  home  of  sun -bright  heroes.  There  is 
the  mountain  whence  Zeus  cast  forth  his  thunder- 
bolts, the  grove  where  the  thorns  of  roses  scratched 
the  tender  feet  of  Aphrodite,  and  perchance  a 
whole  olive  grove  sprung  from  the  tree  into  which 
the  nymph,  favored  and  pursued  by  Apollo,  was 
metamorphosed.  The  sunlit  summits  of  snowy 
CEta  and  Ossa  still  sparkle  there  when  the  declining 
sun  kindles  his  beacons  upon  them,  and  Olympus 
still  has  its  thunderbolts ;  yet  it  is  no  longer  Zeus 
who  casts  them,  but  Ali  Tepelenti,  Pasha  of  Albania 
and  master  of  half  the  Turkish  Empire,  and  the 
rose  which  the  blood  of  Venus  dyed  crimson  blooms 
for  him,  and  the  laurel  sprung  from  the  love  of 
Apollo  puts  forth  her  green  garlands  for  him  also. 

The  poetic  figures  of  the  bright  gods  are  seen  no 


20  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

more  on  the  quiet  mountain.  With  a  long  gun 
over  his  shoulder,  a  palikar  walks  hither  and  thither, 
who  has  built  his  hut  in  a  lurking-place  where  Ali 
Pasha  will  not  find  it.  The  high  porticos  lie  level 
with  the  ground  ;  the  paths  of  Leonidas  and  The- 
mistocles  are  covered  with  sentry-boxes,  that  none 
may  pass  that  way. 

From  the  summit  of  the  mighty  Lithanizza  you 
can  look  down  upon  the  fairy-like  city  which  dom- 
inates Albania.  It  is  Janina,  the  historically  re- 
nowned Janina. 

Beside  it  stands  the  lake  of  Acheruz,  in  whose 
green  mirror  the  city  can  regard  itself ;  there  it  is 
in  duplicate.  It  is  as  deep  as  it  is  high.  The  golden 
half-moons  of  the  minarets  sparkle  in  the  lake  and 
in  the  sky  at  the  same  time.  The  roofless  white 
houses,  rising  one  above  another,  seem  melted  into 
a  compact  mass,  and  they  are  encircled  by  red  bast- 
ions, with  exits  out  of  eight  gates. 

But  what  have  we  to  do  with  the  minarets,  the 
bazaars,  the  kiosks  of  the  city  ?  Beyond  the  city, 
where  Cocytus,  rippling  down  from  the  wooded 
mountain,  forms,  with  the  lake  into  which  it  flows, 
a  peninsula,  there,  on  an  isthmus,  stands  the  strong 
fortress  of  Ali  Pasha,  with  vast,  massive  bastions, 
a  heavy,  iron-plated  drawbridge,  and  a  ditch  in 
front  of  the  walls  full  of  solid  sharp-pointed  stakes 
in  two  fathoms  of  water.  From  the  summits  of 
the  ramparts  the  throats  of  a  hundred  cannons  gape 
down  upon  the  town — iron  dogs,  whose  barking  can 
be  heard  four  miles  off.  On  the  walls  an  innumera- 
ble multitude  of  armed  men  keep  watch,  and  in 
front  of  the  gate  the  guns  look  out  upon  each  other 
from  the  port-holes  of  the  steep  bastions  on  both 


EMIXAH  .  21 

sides  of  it.  Woe  to  those  who  should  attempt  to 
make  their  way  into  the  citadel  by  force  !  The 
gate,  fastened  with  a  huge  chain,  is  defended  by 
three  heavy  iron  gratings,  and  from  close  beneath 
the  lofty  projecting  roof  circular  pieces  of  artillery 
shine  forth,  in  front  of  which  are  pyramidal  stacks 
of  bombs. 

The  court-yard  forms  a  huge  crescent,  in  which 
nothing  is  visible  but  instruments  of  warfare,  en- 
gines of  destruction.  In  the  lower  part  of  the  semi- 
circular barracks  stand  the  sentry-boxes,  while  in 
the  opposite  semicircle  a  long  pavilion  cuts  the 
fortress  in  two,  extending  from  the  end  of  one 
semicircle  to  the  end  of  the  other,  and  here  are 
three  gates,  which  lead  into  the  heart  of  the  for- 
tress. 

In  all  this  long  building  there  are  no  windows 
above  the  court-yard,  only  two  rows  of  narrow  em- 
brasures are  visible  therein.  All  the  windows  are 
on  the  other  side  overlooking  the  garden,  and  there 
dwell  the  odalisks  of  Ali  Pasha's  three  sons.  The 
three  sons,  Omar,  Almuhan,  and  Zaid,  inhabit  the 
building  with  the  three  gates.  The  back  of  this 
building  looks  out  upon  the  garden,  in  which  the 
harems  of  the  pasha's  sons  are  wont  to  disport  them- 
selves. 

Here  again  a  long  bastion  barricades  the  garden, 
a  bastion  also  protected  by  trenches  full  of  water, 
across  whose  iron  bridge  you  gain  admission  into 
the  pasha's  inmost  fortress. 

And  what  is  that  like  ?  Nobody  can  tell.  The 
brass  gates,  covered  with  silver  arabesques,  seem  to 
be  eternally  closed,  and  none  ever  comes  in  or  goes 
out  save  Ali  and  his  dumb  eunuchs,  and  those  cap- 


22  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

tives  whose  heads  alone  are  sent  back  again.  The 
bastion  surrounding  this  central  fortress  is  so  high 
that  you  cannot  look  into  it  from  the  top  of  the 
citadel  outside  ;  but  if  any  one  could  peep  down 
upon  it  from  the  summit  of  the  lofty  Lithanizza 
he  would  perceive  inside  it  a  fairy  palace,  with  walls 
of  colored  marble  protected  by  silver  trellis-work, 
with  blue-painted,  brazen  cupolas,  with  golden  half- 
moons  on  their  pointed  spires.  One  tower  there, 
the  largest  of  all,  has  a  roof  of  red  cast-iron,  and 
this  one  roof  stands  out  prominently  from  among 
all  the  other  buildings  of  the  inner  fortress.  The 
colored  kiosks  are  everywhere  wreathed  with  gar- 
lands of  flowers,  and  the  spectator  perched  aloft 
would  plainly  discern  cradles  for  growing  vines  on 
the  top  of  the  bastion.  He  might  also,  in  the  dusk 
of  the  summer  evenings,  distinguish  seductive 
shapes  bathing  in  the  basins  of  the  fountains,  and 
lose  his  reason  while  he  gazed  ;  or  it  might  chance 
(which  is  much  more  likely)  that  Ali  Pasha's  patrols 
might  come  upon  him  unawares  and  cast  him  down 
from  the  mountain-top. 

This  wondrous  retreat  was  Ali's  paradise.  Here 
he  grouped  together  the  most  beautiful  flowers  of 
the  round  world  —  flowers  sprung  from  the  earth 
or  from  a  human  mother.  For  maidens  also  are 
flowers,  and  may  be  plucked  and  enjoyed  like 
other  flowers.  But  the  most  beautiful  among  so 
many  beautiful  flowers  was  Eminah,  Tepelenti's 
favorite  damsel,  the  sixteen-years-old  daughter  of 
the  Pasha  of  Delvino,  who  gave  her  to  Ali  just  as 
so  many  eminent  Turks  are  wont  to  give  their 
daughters.  On  the  day  of  their  birth  they  promise 
to  give  them  to  some  powerful  magnate,  and  by  the 


EMINAH  23 

time  the  fiancee  is  marriageable  the  fianct  has  al- 
ready one  foot  in  his  grave. 

A  pale,  blue-eyed  flower  was  she,  looking  as  if  she 
had  grown  up  beneath  the  light  of  the  moon  instead 
of  the  light  of  the  sun  ;  her  shape,  her  figure,  was 
so  delicate  that  it  reminded  one  of  those  sylphs  of 
the  fairy  world  that  fly  without  wings.  Her  voice 
was  sweeter,  more  tender,  than  the  voices  of  the 
other  damsels ;  and,  wiser  than  they,  she  could 
speak  so  that  you  felt  rather  than  heard  what  she 
said.  AH  loved  to  toy  with  her  light  hair,  unwind 
the  long  folds  of  her  tresses,  cover  his  face  with 
their  silken  richness,  and  fancy  he  was  reposing  in 
the  shades  of  paradise. 

And  the  child  loved  the  man.  Ali  was  a  hand- 
some old  fellow.  His  beard  was  as  glossy  and  as 
purely  white  as  the  wing  of  a  swan  ;  the  roses  of  his 
cheeks  had  not  yet  faded ;  when  he  smiled  he  was 
no  longer  a  tiger,  but  revealed  a  row  of  teeth  even 
handsomer  than  her  own.  And,  in  addition  to  that, 
he  was  valiant — a  hero.  Even  in  old  men  love  is  no 
mere  impotent  desire  when  accompanied  with  all 
the  vigorous  passion  of  youth. 

And  Eminah  knew  not  that  there  were  such 
beings  as  youths  in  the  world.  Excepting  her 
father  and  her  husband,  she  had  never  seen  a  man, 
and  therefore  fancied  that  other  men  also  had  just 
such  white  beards  and  silvery  eyelashes  as  they. 
Brought  up  from  the  days  of  her  childhood  in  the 
midst  of  a  harem,  among  women  and  eunuchs,  she 
had  not  the  remotest  idea  of  the  romantic  visions 
which  the  hearts  of  love-sick  girls  are  wont  to  form 
from  the  contemplation  of  their  ideals ;  to  her  her 
husband  was  the  most  perfect  man  for  whom  a 


24  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

woman's  heart  had  ever  beaten,  and  she  clung  to 
him  as  if  he  had  been  a  supernatural  being. 

In  her  heart  Eminah  pictured  Ali  as  one  of 
those  beneficent  genii  who  in  the  marvellous  tales 
of  the  Arabs  rise  up  from  the  bowels  of  the  earth 
and  the  depths  of  the  sea,  a  hundred  times  greater 
than  ordinary  men,  ten  times  younger,  and  a  thou- 
sand times  more  powerful,  who  are  wont  to  give 
talismanic  rings  to  their  earthly  favorites,  appear- 
ing before  them  when  they  turn  this  ring  in  order 
to  instantly  gratify  their  desires,  their  wishes;  to 
transport  them  from  place  to  place  with  their  huge 
muscular  hands,  to  make  them  ride  a  cock-horse  on 
their  middle  fingers,  play  hide-and-seek  with  them 
in  the  thousand  corners  of  their  vast  palaces,  watch 
over  them  when  they  sleep,  overwhelm  them  with 
heaps  and  heaps  of  gifts  and  treasures,  and  yet  are 
gentle  and  complacent  in  spite  of  their  immense 
power.  They  need  but  take  one  step  to  crush  the 
towers  and  bastions  of  the  mightiest  fortress  in 
the  dust,  and  yet  they  walk  so  warily  as  not  even 
to  graze  the  tiny  ant  they  meet  upon  their  path. 
Why,  once  Ali  had  waded  into  the  lake  up  to  his 
waist  to  rescue  two  amorously  fluttering  butterflies 
that  had  fallen  into  it !  Oh  !  Ali  has  such  a  sensi- 
tive soul  that  he  weeps  over  the  bird  that  has  acci- 
dentally beaten  itself  to  death  against  the  bars  of 
its  cage  ;  whenever  he  plucks  a  flower  from  its  stalk 
he  always  raises  it  to  his  lips  to  beg  its  pardon  ; 
and  when  they  told  him  how  at  the  siege  of  Kilsura 
all  the  poor  doves  were  burned,  the  tears  sparkled 
in  his  eyes  ! 

Eminah  does  not  fully  know  the  meaning  of  a 
siege  ;  she  only  grieves  for  the  poor  doves.  How 


EMINAH  25 

they  would  hover  above  the  burning  town  in  white 
clusters  amid  the  black  smoke,  and  fall  down  into 
the  fire  below  ! 

In  reality  the  matter  stood  thus  :  Ali  was  besieg- 
ing Kilsura,  but  could  not  take  it ;  the  besiegers 
fought  valiantly,  and  the  natural  advantages  of  the 
place  prevented  him  from  drawing  near  enough  to 
it.  So  he  signified  to  the  inhabitants  that  he  would 
make  peace  with  them  and  depart  from  their  town, 
and  desired  them,  in  earnest  of  their  pacific  inten- 
tions, to  send  him  a  number  of  white  doves.  The 
besieged  fell  in  with  his  proposal,  and  collecting  to- 
gether all  the  white  doves  in  the  town  they  could 
lay  they  hands  upon,  sent  them  to  Ali.  He  im- 
mediately withdrew  his  siege  artillery,  with  which 
he  had  already  wrought  no  small  mischief,  but  at 
night,  when  every  one  was  asleep,  he  fastened  fiery 
matches  by  long  wires  to  the  feet  of  the  doves,  and 
then  set  them  free.  The  natural  instincts  of  the 
doves  made  them  fly  back  to  their  old  homes,  the 
familiar  roofs  where  their  nests  were,  and  i;i  a  mo- 
ment the  whole  town  was  in  flames,  the  doves  them- 
selves carrying  the  combustible  material  from  roof 
to  roof  and  perishing  themselves  among  the  falling 
houses. 

Ali  wept  sore  as  he  told  to  Eminah  the  story  of 
the  doves  of  Kilsura  ;  yes,  Ali  was  certainly  a  sensi- 
tive soul ! 

The  beautiful  woman  had  everything  that  eye 
could  covet  or  heart  desire.  In  her  apartments 
were  mirrors  as  high  as  the  ceiling,  masterpieces  of 
Venetian  crystal,  and  the  floor  was  covered  with 
Persian  carpets  embroidered  with  flowers.  Blos- 
soming flowers  and  singing  birds  were  in  all  her 


26  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

windows,  and  a  hundred  waiting- women  were  at 
her  beck  and  call.  From  morn  to  eve  Joy  and  Pleas- 
ure were  her  attendants,  and  each  day  presented 
her  with  a  fresh  delight,  a  fresh  surprise. 

Thirty  rooms,  opening  one  into  another,  each  more 
magnificent  than  the  last,  were  hers,  and  hers  alone. 
The  eye  that  feasted  on  one  splendid  object  quickly 
forgot  it  in  the  contemplation  of  a  still  more  splen- 
did marvel,  and  by  the  time  it  had  taken  them  all 
in  was  eager  to  begin  again  at  the  beginning. 

But  there  was  one  thing  which  did  not  please 
Eminah.  When  one  had  got  to  the  end  of  all  the 
thirty  rooms,  it  was  plain  that  they  did  not  end 
there,  for  then  came  a  round  brass  door ;  and  this 
door  was  always  closed  against  her — never  was  she 
able  to  go  through  it.  Now  this  door  led  into  that 
huge  tower  with  the  red  cast-iron  roof,  which  could 
be  seen  such  a  distance  off. 

The  inquisitive  woman  very  much  wanted  to 
know  what  was  inside  this  door  through  which  she 
was  never  suffered  to  go,  though  Ali  himself  used 
it  frequently,  always  closing  it  most  carefully  behind 
him,  and  wearing  the  key  of  it  fastened  to  his  bos- 
om by  a  little  cord. 

Now  and  then  she  had  asked  Ali  what  was  in 
this  tower  that  she  was  not  allowed  to  see,  and 
what  he  did  when  he  remained  there  all  night  alone  ? 
At  such  times  Ali  would  reply  that  he  went  there 
to  consort  with  spirits  who  were  teaching  him  how 
to  find  the  stone  of  the  wise,  how  to  become  per- 
petually young,  how  to  foresee  the  future,  and  make 
gold  and  other  marvels — all  of  which  it  was  easy  to 
make  a  woman  believe  who  did  not  even  know  that 
all  men  do  not  wear  white  beards. 


EMINAH  27 

After  all  such  occasions  Eminah,  when  she  was 
alone  again,  would  conjure  up  before  her  all  sorts 
of  marvellous  blue  and  green  denizens  of  fairyland 
appearing  before  Ali  in  the  elements  of  air,  fire,  and 
water,  to  teach  him  how  to  make  gold.  And  Ali 
always  proved  to  Eminah  that  what  he  told  her 
was  no  idle  tale,  for  whenever  he  returned  the  next 
day  he  was  followed  by  a  whole  procession  of  dumb 
eunuchs  carrying  baskets  filled  with  gold  and  pre- 
cious stones.  Thus  Ali  not  only  knew  how  to  make 
gold,  but  also  those  things  that  are  made  of  gold 
— that  is  to  say,  coined  money  and  filigreed  or- 
naments, which  he  piled  up  before  her ;  and  to 
Eminah  it  seemed  a  very  nice  thing,  and  quite  nat- 
ural that  if  these  peculiar  spirits  could  manufact- 
ure gold  from  nothing,  they  should  also  be  able  to 
make  necklaces  and  bracelets  out  of  smoke,  as  Ali 
told  her  they  did  without  any  difficulty  at  all. 

Now  any  one  would  have  been  curious  to  get  to 
the  bottom  of  such  mysteries,  especially  if  they  were 
close  at  hand ;  how  much  more,  then,  a  spoiled 
and  pampered  young  woman,  who  frequently  was 
not  able  to  sleep  for  the  joy  which  the  presents 
heaped  upon  her  by  Ali  excited  in  her  breast. 
How  much  she  would  have  loved  to  see  these 
benevolent  spirits  who  had  given  her  so  much 
pleasure  ! 

Frequently  she  implored  Ali  to  take  her  with  him 
when  he  went  into  the  red  tower ;  but  the  pasha 
always  tried  to  frighten  her  by  saying  that  these 
spirits  were  most  cruel  to  strangers  in  general,  and 
women  in  particular,  whom  they  would  be  ready  to 
tear  limb  from  limb,  so  that  Eminah  always  had  to 
abandon  her  desire. 


28  THE   LION   OP   JANINA 

But  when  once  a  woman  has  made  up  her  mind 
to  do  a  thing,  do  it  she  will,  though  a  seven-headed 
dragon  were  to  stand  in  the  way  ;  and  if  fear  is  a 
great  power  in  this  world,  curiosity  is  a  still  greater. 

One  evening  Eminah  accompanied  Ali  right  up 
to  the  brass  door,  and'as  he  went  in  she  dexterous- 
ly thrust  a  little  pebble  between  the  door  and  the 
threshold.  Thus  the  door  not  being  completely 
closed,  the  catch  of  the  lock,  despite  a  double  turn 
of  the  key,  shot  back  again  ;  so  instead  of  closing 
the  door  behind  him,  as  Ali  fondly  imagined,  he 
left  it  ajar. 

Eminah  waited  till  the  sound  of  her  husband's 
footsteps  had  quite  ceased.  Then  she  softly  opened 
the  door,  and  at  first  contented  herself  with  peep- 
ing in.  Perceiving  nothing  to  frighten  her  back, 
she  ventured  right  in,  cautiously  peering  around  at 
every  step  lest  any  angry  spirit  should  suddenly 
rise  up  before  her. 

Before  her  lay  a  long  corridor,  and  she  went  right 
to  the  very  end  of  it.  Then  she  came  upon  a  spiral 
staircase,  which  was  so  dark  that  she  had  to  pain- 
fully grope  her  way  along.  A  fatal  curiosity  goaded 
her  on  in  spite  of  the  darkness,  and  presently  she 
found  herself  in  a  large,  round  room,  dimly  lit  by  a 
hanging  lamp. 

All  round  the  walls  of  this  room  were  arranged 
marble  benches,  pitchers  of  water,  funnels,  and 
curious  instruments  of  iron,  leather,  and  wood,  of 
all  shapes  and  sizes,  looking  all  the  more  incompre- 
hensible in  the  semi-darkness.  These  were,  no  doubt, 
the  implements  with  which  Ali  was  in  the  habit  of 
making  gold,  thought  Eminah  to  herself,  and,  dis- 
covering a  convenient  niche  at  the  head  of  the  stair- 


EMINAH  29 

case,  she  squeezed  herself  into  it  so  that  she  could 
see  everything  from  thence  without  being  seen  her- 
self. 

A  few  moments  afterwards  the  door  at  the  oppo- 
site end  of  the  room  opened,  and  AH  and  twelve 
dumb  eunuchs  entered  with  torches.  The  room  was 
illuminated  at  once,  the  eunuchs  thrusting  the 
torches  into  large  iron  sconces  ;  one  of  them  then 
proceeded  to  light  the  fire  and  pile  up  various  in- 
struments around  it ;  some  sort  of  liquid  also  began 
bubbling  in  a  caldron.  AH  meanwhile  was  sitting 
down  on  a  camp-stool  and  distributing  his  com- 
mands in  a  low  voice.  "  Now  we  shall  see  how  AH 
makes  gold,"  thought  Eminah. 

But  now  at  a  sign  from  AH  two  of  the  eunuchs 
entered  a  trap-door,  and  a  few  moments  afterwards 
the  rattling  of  chains  was  audible  ;  the  trap-door 
opened  again,  and  in  came  two  old  men,  peculiar- 
looking  creatures,  with  long  gray  hair,  closely 
cropped  beards,  and  strange  garments,  the  like  of 
which  Eminah  had  never  seen  before. 

"  Ah  !  no  doubt  these  are  the  spirits  which  help 
AH  to  make  gold,"  thought  Eminah  to  herself. 
"  Well,  at  any  rate,  they  are  in  chains,  so  I  need  not 
be  afraid  of  them."  And,  like  the  timid  spectator  of 
some  strange  drama,  she  looked  out  from  her  hiding- 
place  at  the  scene  which  followed. 

The  two  old  men  were  led  up  to  AH,  who,  smiling 
and  rubbing  his  hands,  stood  up  before  them,  and  for 
a  long  time  did  not  speak,  but  only  smiled.  At  last 
he  gently  stroked  the  face  of  the  younger  of  the  two. 

"  Merchant  of  Naples,  thou  still  dost  not  know, 
then,  where  thy  treasures  lie  hidden?"  said  he, 
gently. 


30  THE    LION   OP   JANINA 

"  My  lord,"  replied  the  other,  with  desperate  ob- 
sequiousness, "  I  have  given  up  everything  that  was 
mine.  I  am  indeed  a  beggar." 

"  Merchant  of  Naples  !  how  canst  thou  say  so  ? 
Let  me  refresh  thy  memory  !  Thou  didst  go  to 
Toulon  with  a  full  cargo  of  Indian  goods,  and  there 
sold  it  all.  When  we  met  together  on  thy  return 
journey  thou  didst  offer  me  a  thousand  ducats, 
which  I  also  took.  But  where  is  the  remainder  ?  A 
profit  of  twelve  thousand  ducats  appears  entered  in 
thy  trading-books." 

"  Those  books  are  false,  my  lord,"  said  the  mer- 
chant, in  a  tearful  voice.  "  I  made  those  totally 
fictitious  entries  simply  to  preserve  my  credit." 

"  Merchant  of  Naples,  thou  dost  calumniate  thy- 
self. Thou  dost  want  to  make  me  believe  that  thou 
art  not  an  honest  man.  Forgive  me  if  I  enliven 
thy  memory  a  little." 

With  that  he  beckoned  to  the  eunuchs,  and  they, 
undressing  the  merchant,  laid  him  on  the  torturing 
slab  and  tortured  him  for  two  mortal  hours.  It 
would  be  too  horrible  to  say  what  they  did  to  him. 
Oh,  that  curious  woman  amply  atoned  for  her  curi- 
osity !  She  was  obliged  to  look  upon  tortures  which 
made  her  limbs  shake  and  shiver  as  if  she  were  in  the 
grip  of  an  ague.  She  covered  her  face,  but  the  howls 
of  the  tortured  wretch  penetrated  to  her  very  soul, 
and  her  sensitive  nerves  suffered  almost  as  much  as 
if  she  had  felt  these  torments  herself.  Gradually, 
however,  a  curious  sort  of  torpor  seemed  to  stop  the 
beating  of  her  heart ;  her  limbs  ceased  to  tremble, 
she  opened  her  eyes  and,  motionless  as  a  statue, 
watched  the  hellish  scene  to  the  very  end. 

Ali  was  evidently  a  past-master  in  this  horrible 


EMINAtf  31 

science.  He  himself  elaborately  graduated  the 
whole  process,  indicating  briefly  when  and  how 
long  the  thumb-screws,  the  Spanish  boot,  the  boiling 
oil,  and  the  water  funnel  were  to  be  used.  Last  of 
all  came  the  culminating  torment.  They  wrapped 
the  merchant  round  in  a  raw  buffalo-skin  and  laid 
him  down  before  the  fiercely  blazing  fire.  As  the 
fire  began  to  compress  the  raw  hide,  and  slowly 
press  together  the  tortured  limbs,"  the  limit  of  the 
poor  wretch's  endurance  was  reached,  and  he  con- 
fessed that  his  treasures  were  concealed  in  an  iron 
chest,  fastened  by  a  chain  to  the  bottom  of  the  ship. 

Then  they  freed  him  from  the  torturing  hide  ;  in 
a  state  of  collapse,  with  foaming  lips,  a  bleeding 
body  and  dislocated  limbs,  he  flopped  down  upon 
the  cold  marble. 

"  Thou  seest  now,  my  dear,"  observed  Ali,  gently, 
"what  trouble  thou  mightest  have  saved  thyself 
and  me  also."  Then  he  beckoned  to  the  eunuchs 
to  remove  the  merchant. 

So  this  was  the  way  in  which  Ali  made  gold  !  A 
very  simple  sort  of  alchemy,  certainly! 

And  now  it  was  the  turn  of  the  second  man. 
And  a  haughty,  broad  -  shouldered  fellow  he  was, 
who  had  regarded  the  torments  of  his  comrade  with- 
out moving  a  muscle  of  his  face. 

"Then  thou  wilt  not  tell  me  thy  name,  valorous 
warrior?"  inquired  Ali. 

"  I  will  tell  thee  thine— Devil,  Belial,  Satan  !" 

"  I  thank  thee  !  Thou  dost  me  too  much  honor. 
But  it  is  thy  name  I  should  like  to  know.  I  sup- 
pose thou  art  some  wealthy  Venetian  noble,  whose 
whereabouts  his  kinsmen  are  rather  anxious  to  dis- 
cover, and  who  would  not  be  ungrateful  if  any  one 


32  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

sent  thee  back  to  them.  For  I  value  thee  very 
highly." 

"  Know,  then,  that  I  am  a  rich  noble,  and  that  at 
home  I  have  a  palace  and  treasures,  but  not  a  para 
of  my  property  shalt  thou  ever  see,  for  I  have  taken 
poison.  Dost  thou  not  see  the  blue  spots  upon  my 
hand  ?  Presently  thou  wilt  see  them  on  my  face. 
In  five  minutes'  time  I  shall  be  dead." 

And  so  indeed  it  fell  out.  The  haughty  noble 
died,  while  All,  furious  with  passion,  cursed  the 
Prophet. 

And  Eminah,  from  her  hiding-place,  looked  in- 
tently upon  Ali's  face.  What  must  have  been  her 
thoughts  at  that  moment  ? 

The  eunuchs  removed  the  dead  body,  and  Ali 
beckoned  once  more  to  them,  whereupon  they 
brought  in  through  the  opposite  doors  a  wondrously 
beautiful  damsel  and  a  handsome  youth.  When 
the  youth  and  the  damsel  beheld  each  other  the 
tears  gushed  from  their  eyes.  They  were  lovers, 
and  lovers  meet  for  each  other. 

Eminah  now  perceived  with  amazement  that 
there  were  other  kinds  of  men  besides  those  who 
wore  gray  beards.  The  captive  youth,  with  his 
frank  and  comely  countenance  and  long  black  locks, 
so  rejoiced  her  eyes  that  she  could  not  take  them 
off  him.  She  had  never  seen  anything  of  the  sort 
before. 

Ali  approached  the  pair  and  smiled  upon  them 
both,  and  each  of  them  said  to  him,  "  I  curse  thee  !" 

He  said  to  the  youth,  "  Renounce  thy  bride  and 
thou  shalt  live  !"  and  the  youth  replied,  "  I  curse 
thee  !" 

He  said  to  the  damsel,  "  Love  me,  be  mine,  and 


EMINAH  33 

thy  betrothed  shall  live  !"  and  the  girl  replied,  "  I 
curse  thee  !" 

And  Eminah  unconsciously  murmured  after  them 
each  time,  "  I  curse  thee  !"  without  knowing  what 
she  was  saying. 

Then  Ali  forced  the  youth  down  on  his  knees, 
and  the  eunuchs  stripped  off  his  robe.  One  of 
them  then  siezed  him  by  his  beautiful  long  black 
hair,  and  raised  him  up  into  the  air  thereby,  while 
the  other  stood  behind  him  with  a  large  sharp  sword. 

"  Thy  beloved  shall  die  this  instant,"  roared  the 
infuriated  Ali,  "  if  thou  dost  not  set  him  free!  Em- 
brace either  me  or  his  headless  body." 

Eminah  turned  her  loathing  eyes  from  the  vile 
face  of  Ali,  which,  in  that  moment,  was  deformed 
out  of  all  recognition. 

And  the  young  couple  replied  with  one  voice, 
"  We  curse  thee  !"  It  was  as  though  they  had  tak- 
en an  oath  to  say  nothing  else.  The  same  instant 
the  sword  flashed  around  the  youth.  His  beautiful 
head  bounded  into  the  air,  then  rolled  along  the 
floor  to  the  foot  of  the  spiral  staircase,  and  stood 
still  before  the  very  niche  where  Eminah  was  con- 
cealed—  at  her  very  feet,  in  fact.  The  headless 
body,  convulsed  by  a  final  spasm,  rent  its  fetters  in 
twain,  and  then  falling  prone,  stretched  out  its 
hands  towards  the  terror-stricken  girl,  while  the 
severed  head,  which  had  rolled  up  to  Eminah's  feet, 
seemed  to  be  murmuring  something — anyhow  the 
lips  moved.  Eminah  bending  down  towards  it, 
put  her  ears  close  to  the  quivering  mouth  and 
whispered,  "  I  -hear  !  I  hear  what  thou  sayest !" 
And  she  really  believed  she  heard  something.  Per- 
haps it  was  only  her  heart  that  was  speaking. 


34  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

After  that  she  wrapped  the  head  in  her  shawl, 
and  hastened  away  from  the  tower  back  into  her 
own  room,  concealing  the  ghastly  but  still  beautiful 
trophy  beneath  the  pillows  of  her  sofa.  Then  she 
commanded  her  odalisks  to  appear  before  her,  that 
they  might  dance  and  sing. 

Dawn  was  now  not  far  distant,  and  still  the  en- 
tertainment was  going  on.  Then  Ali  returned  from 
the  red  tower — his  face  was  gentle  and  smiling — 
and  after  him  came  two  eunuchs  carrying  gold  and 
treasure  in  large  baskets  ;  and  they  emptied  them 
all  at  Eminah's  feet.  The  damsel  rejoiced,  laughed 
at  the  sight  of  the  treasures,  and,  throwing  herself 
on  Ali's  neck,  repaid  him  with  kisses,  and  dragged 
him  down  to  her  on  the  sofa. 

"  Behold,  the  dzliins  have  sent  thee  treasures," 
said  Ali.  "  But  a  strange  thing  hath  befallen  me  ; 
one  of  my  treasures  rolled  away  upon  the  floor,  and, 
search  where  I  will,  I  cannot  find  it." 

Eminah  laughed,  and  fell  a-teasing  him.  "  Per- 
chance the  dzhins  have  stolen  it  from  thee,"  cried 
she.  Suppose  she  had  said,  "  Thou  art  sitting  upon 
it,  Ali  Pasha  ?" 

Ali  Pasha  took  the  damsel  upon  his  lap,  and  re- 
joiced in  her  innocent,  artless  eyes  and  her  childlike 
smile.  He  fancied  he  could  look  through  those 
eyes  down  to  the  very  depths  of  her  heart.  If  only 
he  could  have  seen  into  it ! 

And  while  he  was  thus  toying  with  her,  the  kadun- 
keit-khuda  entered  the  room  of  the  odalisks,  bring- 
ing with  him  a  veiled  damsel. 

"  Gracious  lady,"  said  he  to  Eminah,  "  I  bring  thee 
a  Greek  maiden,  who  hath  heard  the  fame  of  thy 
benevolence,  and  hath  come  of  her  own  accord  to 


EMINAH  35 

bask  in  the  light  of  thy  countenance,  and  gather 
fresh  strength  from  my  smiles  ;"  and  he  drew  the 
maiden  forward  towards  Eminah,  who  immediately 
recognized  the  girl  whose  lover  Ali  Pasha  had  de- 
capitated, and  said,  playfully,  to  the  guardian  of  the 
harem  : 

"  Lo,  kadun-keit-khuda,  the  damsel  is  trembling! 
If  thou  dost  not  support  her  she  will  fall !" 

"  It  is  by  reason  of  her  great  shyness,  gracious 
lady." 

"  But  how  pale  she  is  !" 

"  Thy  beauty  casteth  a  shadow  upon  her." 

"  But  look  ! — she  weeps  !" 

"They  are  tears  of  joy,  lady." 

Eminah  gave  the  guardian  of  the  harem  a  hand- 
ful of  ducats  for  his  good  answers,  and  allowed  the 
bashful  damsel  to  stand  before  her.  Then  she  sent 
for  sweetmeats,  golden  bread-fruits,  wine  with  the 
lustre  of  garnets,  and  her  opium  narghily  ;  and, 
cradling  Ali's  gray  head  'in  her  bosom,  seized  her 
mandolin  and  sang  to  him  Arab  love-songs — hot, 
burning,  rose-scented,  dew-besprinkled  love-songs — 
and  the  pasha  drew  over  his  face  the  long  silken 
tresses  of  the  damsel,  as  if  he  would  envelop  him- 
self in  the  cool  shade  of  Paradise,  and  sleep  a  sleep 
of  sweet  melody,  intoxicating  rapture,  and  soothing 
opium. 

When  the  ivory  stem  of  the  narghily  dropped 
from  the  hands  of  the  pasha,  Eminah  sent  from  the 
room  all  the  damsels  ;  only  the  newly  arrived  Greek 
maiden  remained  behind.  She  made  her  sit  down 
before  her  on  a  cushion,  and,  putting  into  her  hands 
a  large  silk  fan  to  fan  the  pasha  with,  she  asked 
the  damsel  her  name. 


3^  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

The  damsel  shook  her  head — she  would  not  say. 
"  Why  wilt  thou  not  tell  me  ?" 
"  Because  I  have  still  a  sister  at  home." 
Eminah  understood  the  answer.  "  Come  nearer," 
said  she.  "  Last  night  I  had  a  dream.  Methought 
I  was  in  a  large  tower,  the  interior  of  which  was  il- 
luminated by  twelve  torches.  Whichever  way  my 
eyes  turned  they  lit  upon  horrors — strange,  terrify- 
ing objects  appeared  before  me ;  and,  although 
twelve  torches  were  burning,  darkness  was  still  all 
around.  And  it  seemed  to  me  as  if  this  darkness 
was  not  vapor  or  thick  smoke,  but  a  black  mass  of 
human  beings  all  wedged  together,  who  raised  their 
eyelids  every  now  and  then.  After  that  I  saw  Ali 
Pasha  sitting  in  a  red  velvet  chair  with  golden  tiger 
feet,  and  as  he  sat  cross-legged,  after  the  Turkish 
manner,  it  looked  as  if  the  tiger  feet  were  his  own 
feet.  Many  terrifying  shapes  passed  before  me,  and 
at  last  a  young  man  and  a  young  woman  were  all  who 
remained  in  the  room,  and  to  every  question  put  to 
them  they  replied,  '  I  curse  thee  !'  Ali  Pasha  said 
to  the  damsel,  '  Love  me  !'  and  she  replied,  '  I  curse 
thee  !'  And  immediately  the  head  of  the  youth  be- 
gan rolling  from  one  end  of  the  marble  floor  to  the 
other,  right  up  to  my  feet  ;  and  a  drop  of  blood 
dripped  from  it  on  to  my  slipper,  and,  strange  to 
say,  the  drop  of  blood  was  still  there  when  I  awoke. 
Look,  is  that  really  a  drop  of  blood,  or  is  it  only  my 
imagination  ?" 

And  therewith  Eminah  put  out  her  pretty  little 
foot,  which  hitherto  she  had  kept  hidden  beneath 
the  folds  of  her  garment,  and  showed  it  to  the  Greek 
girl.  Then  the  girl  fell  weeping  at  her  feet  and 
kissed  the  slipper.  But  it  was  not  the  foot  of  her 


EMINAH  37 

mistress  that  she  kissed  —  no,  no;  what  she  kissed 
was  the  drop  of  blood  that  had  dropped  upon  the 
slipper. 

"  Look !  that  drop  of  blood  has  burned  right 
through  the  morocco  leather  of  my  shoe  !  What 
will  it  do,  then,  to  the  soul  on  which  it  has  fallen  ?" 

And  with  that  she  withdrew  her  hair  from  the 
pasha's  face  and  looked  at  him  with  loathing.  Yet 
he  slept  as  calmly  as  if  he  were  sleeping  the  sleep  of 
the  just. 

For  nine  and  seventy  years  he  had  lived  happily, 
joyously,  triumphantly,  beloved  by  angels  ;  and  all 
the  curses,  all  the  murders,  that  were  upon  his  aged 
head  were  unable  to  carve  one  wrinkle  on  his  fore- 
head, or  distort  a  feature  of  his  face,  or  cut  off  one 
day  of  his  life,  or  even  to  disturb  one  of  his  dreams  ; 
and  there  he  lies  on  one  and  the  same  couch  with 
the  head  of  his  victim,  the  only  difference  being 
that  his  head  lies  on  the  pillow,  while  the  head  of 
the  murdered  man  lies  beneath  it. 

Eminah  bent  over  him  and  bared  the  breast  of 
the  sleeper,  who  slept  calmly  and  regularly  all  the 
time. 

"  On  that  table  lies  an  enamelled  dagger,"  said  she 
to  the  girl ;  "  bring  it  hither." 

The  girl  darted  away  for  the  dagger,  and  came 
back  with  it.  There  she  stood,  grasping  it  convul- 
sively in  her  hand,  as  if  she  only  awaited  a  signal  to 
drive  it  home. 

"  No,  not  so,"  said  Eminah.  "  Cut  not  off  his  life, 
but  cut  through  this  cord  !"  and,  taking  the  key 
which  Ali  wore  round  his  neck,  she  cut  it  from  its 
cord  with  the  dagger.  "  This  key  opens  the  red 
tower.  When  they  pitched  the  dead  bodies  through 


38  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

the  trap-door  I  heard  the  roar  of  falling  water.  It 
is  certain,  therefore,  that  one  can  get  through  the 
torture-chamber  to  the  lake  of  Acheruz.  We  can 
get  down  to  it  by  ropes.  I  can  swim,  and  thou  canst 
also,  I  am  sure  ;  for  art  thou  not  a  Hydriot  girl  ?  * 
When  we  have  reached  the  heights  of  Lithanizza 
we  shall  find  a  safe  refuge  in  the  midst  of  the  forests. 
Wherever  it  is,  it  will  be  all  one  to  me.  Better  to 
be  among  wolves  and  lynxes  than  near  AH  Pasha. 
Will  you  do  what  I  say  ?" 

The  damsel's  bosom  heaved  violently  ;  she  hid 
her  head  on  Eminah's  shoulder  and  kissed  her. 

"  Freedom !"  she  whispered,  full  of  rapture  ;  "  free- 
dom above  all  things  !  It  is  now  my  only  joy." 

"  Nobody  will  observe  us,"  said  Eminah,  spurning 
aside  the  jewels,  which  she  loathed  now  that  she 
knew  whence  they  came.  "  It  is  the  last  night  of 
the  Feast  of  Bairam.  Every  one  is  hastening  to 
compensate  himself  for  the  privations  of  the  Fast  of 
Ramadan,  every  one  is  sleeping  or  enjoying  him- 
self ;  the  greater  part  of  the  garrison  is  making 
merry  in  the  apartments  of  the  beys  ;  even  the  sons 
of  Ali  Pasha,  all  three  of  them,  are  feasting  with 
Mukhtar  Bey.  We  shall  be  able  to  escape  them, 
and  then  the  whole  world  lies  before  us." 

The  Greek  girl  pressed  the  lady's  hand.  "We 
will  go  together  !"  she  cried.  "  My  brother  dwells 
among  the  mountains  of  Corinth ;  he  is  a  valiant 
warrior,  and  will  give  us  an  asylum." 

"  Then  go  thither  !  I  shall  seek  refuge  with  my 
kinsmen  at  Stambul.  Now  go  into  the  apartments 

*  An  inhabitant  of  the  isle  of  Hydra.  The  Hydriots  were  re- 
markable for  their  enterprise  and  daring. 


EMINAH  39 

of  the  odalisks  and  ask  for  apparel.  I  have  already 
hatched  a  good  plan.  If  they  are  all  asleep  come 
softly  back  with  thy  clothes.  The  kadun-keit- 
khuda  only  sleeps  with  half  an  eye  ;  beware  of  him  ! 
If  he  ask  thee  whither  thou  art  going,  show  him 
the  pasha's  handkerchief,  and  he  will  fancy  Ali 
awaits  thee." 

The  face  of  the  Greek  girl  blushed  purple  at  these 
words  ;  even  to  lie  on  such  a  subject  was  a  horrible 
thought  to  her.  But  Eminah  beckoned  to  her  to 
be  gone,  and  when  she  found  herself  alone  she  drew 
forth  the  head  she  had  concealed  beneath  the  pillow 
and  placed  it  on  a  round  table  in  front  of  her.  For 
a  long  time  she  gazed  at  the  sunken  eyes,  the  gap- 
ing mouth,  and  the  long  black  tresses  which  rolled 
over  the  table  on  both  sides.  The  lady  smoothed 
the  raven  -  black  tresses  with  her  soft  hand,  and 
passed  her  fingers  right  across  the  noble  features 
without  a  shudder  at  their  icy  coldness. 

There  she  sat  an  hour  long  opposite  the  dead 
head  ;  and  beside  her  Ali  Tepelenti,  the  terror  of 
the  whole  region,  lay  prone  in  a  deep,  motionless 
slumber.  It  was  a  strange  sight,  this  young  girl 
alone  there  between  these  two  horrors.  She  had 
resolved  to  quit  Ali  and  set  the  Greek  damsel  free  ; 
but  what  she  meant  to  do  after  that  she  herself 
could  not  have  said. 

In  an  hour's  time  the  Greek  damsel  returned. 
She  came  so  softly  that  nobody  could  have  heard 
her  ;  even  Eminah  did  not  perceive  her  till  the 
damsel  stood  before  the  severed  head  and  uttered  a 
cry  of  terror.  Only  for  an  instant,  only  for  the 
duration  of  a  lightning-flash  did  this  cry  last ;  the 
damsel  stifled  it  at  once,  and  if  it  awoke  any  one  in 


40  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

the  palace  he  must  have  fancied  he  was  dreaming 
or  had  dreamed  it,  and  would  go  on  sleeping  again. 
Then  the  damsel,  in  an  agony  of  speechless  grief, 
bent  over  the  head  of  her  betrothed,  and  her  tears 
flowed  in  streams,  though  not  a  word  escaped  her 
lips. 

At  last  Eminah  grasped  the  girl's  hand  and  bade 
her  make  haste.  So  she  dried  her  tears,  and  after 
placing  the  severed  head  in  front  of  that  of  the  sleep- 
ing pasha  so  that  they  confronted  each  other,  and 
cutting  off  one  of  the  locks  from  its  temples,  she  cov- 
ered the  cold  eyes  with  bitter,  burning  kisses,  and 
then,  taking  up  her  things,  rapidly  followed  Eminah 
through  the  long  suite  of  rooms. 

A  few  minutes  later  they  were  in  the  torture- 
chamber.  It  was  quite  empty  ;  the  blood  stains  had 
been  washed  away,  there  was  nothing  to  recall  the 
horrors  of  the  night  before. 

They  opened  the  trap  -  door  through  which  the 
dead  bodies  were  wont  to  be  cast.  At  the  bottom 
of  the  deep  black  void  there  was  a  roaring  sound  as 
if  the  lake  were  in  a  commotion.  No  doubt  a  tem- 
pest was  raging  outside.  How  were  these  girls  to 
escape  by  way  of  the  subterranean  stream  ?  Per- 
haps some  of  the  headless  corpses  were  also  swim- 
ming down  yonder  amidst  the  foaming  waves. 
Would  those  who  ventured  down  into  those  depths 
ever  see  the  light  of  day  again  ?  But  to  them  it  was 
all  one.  Better  to  perish  in  the  deep  void  than  be 
condemned  to  the  embraces  of  Ali  Pasha.  How 
the  two  girls  abominated  him  ! — the  one  because  he 
had  murdered  her  love,  the  other  because  he  had 
loved  her. 

"  Don't  be  afraid,"  they  said  to  each  other ;  and 


EMINAH  41 

fastening  their  bundles  to  a  long  rope  which  was 
used  in  torturing,  they  let  it  down  into  the  deep 
well,  with  a  lamp  at  the  end  of  it,  and  when  the 
water  put  out  the  light  they  fastened  the  other  end 
of  the  rope  to  the  hinge  of  the  door,  and  each  in 
turn  let  herself  down  by  it. 

And  whether  they  lived  or  whether  they  died, 
Ali  Pasha  lost  on  that  day  two  talismans  which  he 
should  have  guarded  more  jealously  than  the  light 
of  his  eyes :  one  was  the  spirit  of  blessing,  the  other 
the  spirit  of  cursing,  both  of  which  he  had  held 
fast  bound,  and  both  of  which  had  now  been  let 
loose. 

At  the  moment  when  the  two  damsels  plunged 
into  the  lake  of  Acheruz  the  slumber  of  tranquil- 
lity disappeared  from  the  eyes  of  Ali  Pasha,  and  he 
began  to  see  spectres. 

A  peculiar  feeling  came  over  him.  He  whom 
phantoms  avoided  even  when  he  slept,  he  who  had 
never  even  dreamed  of  fear,  he  whom  the  angel  of 
sleep  had  never  known  to  be  a  coward,  now  began 
to  experience  a  peculiar  sensation  which  was  worse 
than  any  sickness  and  more  painful  than  any  suffer- 
ing. He  was  afraid ! 

He  dreamed  that  the  head  of  the  young  Suliot, 
which  had  been  cut  off  by  his  order,  and  which  had 
rolled  away  and  disappeared  so  that  nobody  could 
find  it,  was  now  standing  face  to  face  with  him  on  a 
table,  staring  at  him  fixedly  with  stony  eyes,  and 
repeatedly  addressing  the  sleeper  by  name  :  "  Ali 
Pasha  !  Ali  Pasha  !" 

The  limbs  of  the  sleeper  shook  all  over  in  a 
strange  tremor. 


42  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

"Ali  Pasha  !"  he  heard  the  head  call  for  the  third 
time. 

Groaning,  writhing,  and  turning  himself  about, 
he  contrived  to  knock  the  head  off  the  cushion, 
smearing  all  the  bed  with  blood.  And  now  he  saw 
and  heard  more  terrible  things  than  ever. 

"  One,  two,"  said  the  severed  head.  And  Ali  un- 
derstood that  this  was  the  number  of  the  years  he 
had  still  to  live.  "  Thy  head  hath  no  longer  either 
hand  or  foot,"  continued  the  head ;  and  Ali  was 
obliged  to  listen  to  what  it  said.  "  Two  severed 
heads  now  stand  face  to  face,  mine  and  thine. 
Why  dost  thou  not  reply  to  me  ?  Why  dost  thou 
not  look  into  my  eyes  ?  Two  headless  trunks  stand 
before  the  throne  of  God,  mine  and  thine.  How 
shall  the  Lord  recognize  thee?  He  inquires  which 
is  Ali.  For  every  soul  there  is  a  white  garment  laid 
up.  And  thou  deniest  thy  name,  with  thy  right 
hand  on  thy  heart.  Thou  art  Ali,  for  on  thy  white 
garment  are  five  bloody  finger-prints." 

Ali  writhed  in  his  sleep,  and  covered  with  his 
hand  that  part  of  his  caftan  which  lay  over  his 
heart.  And  all  the  time  the  head  never  disappear- 
ed from  before  his  eyes  and  its  lips  never  closed. 
Presently  it  went  on  again. 

"  Listen,  Ali !  Mene,  mene,  tekel,  upharsin  !  The 
hand  which  guided  thee  in  the  performance  of 
thy  mighty  deeds  is  also  bringing  thine  actions  to 
an  end,  and  thou  shalt  no  longer  be  a  hero  whom 
the  world  admires,  but  a  robber  whom  it  curses. 
Those  whom  thou  lovedest  will  bless  the  day  of  thy 
death,  but  thine  enemies  will  weep  over  thee.  More- 
over, God  hath  ordained  that  thou  shalt  be  the  ruin 
of  thine  own  nation." 


EMINAH  43 

AH  tossed,  sighing  and  groaning,  upon  his  couch, 
and  could  not  awake ;  a  world  of  crime  lay  upon  his 
breast.  He  felt  the  earth  shake  beneath  him,  and 
the  sky  above  his  head  was  dark  with  masses  of 
black  cloud,  and  the  thought  of  death  was  a  terror 
to  him. 

The  head  went  on  speaking.  "  Two  birds  quitted 
thy  rocky  citadel  at  the  same  hour,  a  white  dove 
and  a  black  crow.  The  white  dove  is  Peace,  which 
has  departed  from  thy  towers  ;  the  black  crow  is 
Vengeance,  which  will  return  in  search  of  carcasses 
at  the  scent  of  thy  ruin.  The  white  dove  is  thy 
damsel,  the  black  crow  is  mine  ;  and  woe  to  thee 
from  them  both  !" 

Ali,  in  the  desperation  of  his  rage,  roared  aloud 
in  his  sleep,  and  his  violent  cry  tore  asunder  the 
light  fetters  of  sleep.  He  sprang  from  his  couch 
and  opened  wide  his  eyes — and  lo  !  the  severed  head 
was  standing  before  him  on  the  table. 

The  pasha  looked  about  him  in  consternation  ;  he 
was  not  sufficiently  master  of  himself  at  first  to  tell 
how  much  of  all  this  was  a  dream  and  how  much 
reality.  He  still  seemed  to  hear  the  terrible  words 
which  had  proceeded  from  those  open  lips,  and  his 
hand  involuntarily  clutched  at  his  breast  as  if  he 
would  have  covered  there  the  five  bloody  finger- 
marks. Then  the  cut  cord  from  which  the  key  was 
missing  fell  across  his  hand,  and  immediately  his 
presence  of  mind  returned.  Drawing  his  sword,  he 
rushed  towards  the  brazen  door,  and  discovered  that 
the  fugitives  had  had  sufficient  forethought  to  close 
the  door  and  leave  the  key  in  the  lock  outside,  so 
that  it  could  only  be  opened  by  force.  He  turned 
back  and  rushed  to  the  end  of  the  dormitories. 


44  THE    LION    OP  JANINA 

Some  of  the  odalisks  were  awakened  by  the  sound 
of  his  heavy  footsteps,  and  perceiving  his  troubled 
face,  plunged  underneath  their  bedclothes  in  terror  ; 
in  front  of  the  doors  stood  the  dumb  eunuch  sen- 
tries, leaning  on  their  spears  like  so  many  bronze 
statues. 

He  rushed  down  into  the  garden  to  the  end  of 
the  familiar  walks,  and  when  he  came  to  the  gate 
was  amazed  to  perceive  that  the  drawbridge  which 
separated  his  palace  from  the  dwellings  of  his  sons 
had  been  let  down  and  nobody  was  guarding  it. 
The  topidshis,  the  negroes,  knowing  that  Ali  always 
turned  into  his  harem  on  the  Feast  of  Bairam,  had 
gone  across  to  the  palace  of  Mukhtar  Bey,  who  was 
giving  a  great  banquet  in  honor  of  Vely  Bey  and 
Sulaiman  Bey,  his  brothers.  All  three  had  brought 
together  their  harems  to  celebrate  the  occasion,  and 
while  the  masters  were  diverting  themselves  up- 
stairs, their  servants  were  making  merry  below. 
Music  and  the  loud  mirth  of  those  who  feast  re- 
sounded from  the  house  ;  every  gate  of  the  citadel 
was  open  ;  slaves  and  guards  lying  dead  drunk  in 
heaps,  victims  of  the  forbidden  fluid,  cumbered  the 
streets.  A  whole  hostile  army,  with  drums  beating 
and  colors  flying,  might  easily  have  marched  into 
the  citadel  over  their  prostrate  bodies. 

Wrath  and  the  cold  night  air  gradually  gave 
back  to  Ali  his  soul  of  steel.  Wary  and  alert,  he 
entered  the  palace  of  Mukhtar  Bey. 


CHAPTER    III 
A   TURKISH   PARADISE 

ALI  PASHA  himself  had  built  the  whole  citadel  of 
Janina,  and  had  been  wise  enough,  as  soon  as  the 
fortress  was  finished,  to  at  once  and  quietly  remove 
out  of  the  way  all  the  builders  and  architects  who 
had  had  anything  to  do  with  it,  so  that  he  only  knew 
all  the  secrets  of  the  place.  There  were  secret  exits 
and  listening-galleries  in  every  part  of  the  building, 
and  each  single  group  of  redoubts  which,  viewed 
from  the  outside,  seemed  quite  isolated,  was  really 
so  well  connected  together  by  means  of  subter- 
ranean passages,  that  one  could  go  backward  and 
forward  from  one  to  the  other  without  being  ob- 
served in  the  least.  At  a  later  day  AH  Pasha's 
enemies  were  to  have  very  bitter  experience  of  these 
architectural  peculiarities. 

One  could  go  right  round  the  palace  of  the  three 
Beys,  both  above  and  below,  by  means  of  a  secret 
corridor,  and  not  one  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
building  had  the  least  idea  of  the  existence  of  this 
corridor.  It  was  in  the  midst  of  the  fathom-thick 
wall  between  two  rows  of  windows,  and  within  this 
space  invisible  doors  opened  into  every  apartment, 
either  between  windows,  or  behind  mirrors,  or  be- 
neath the  ceiling  between  two  stories,  and  these 
doors  could  not  be  opened  by  keys,  but  turned  upon 


46  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

invisible  hinges  set  in  motion  by  hidden  screws,  and 
they  closed  so  hermetically  as  to  leave  not  the 
slightest  orifice  behind  them. 

AH  Pasha  stood  there  in  the  banqueting-chamber 
unobserved  by  any  one.  He  stood  beside  a  huge 
Corinthian  column,  and  here  hung  a  black  board  in- 
dicating the  direction  in  which  Mecca  lay.  He  had 
no  fear  that  any  one  would  look  thither.  That  place, 
towards  which  every  truly  believing  Mussulman 
must  turn  when  he  prays,  was  carefully  avoided  by 
every  eye,  for  fear  it  should  encounter  the  golden 
letters  which  sparkle  on  the  walls  of  the  Kaaba.* 

For  now  is  the  time  for  enjoyment.  There  is  no 
need  of  a  heavenly  Paradise,  for  Paradise  is  already 
here  below.  There  is  no  need  to  inquire  of  either 
Muhammad  or  the  angel  Izrafil  concerning  the  wine 
which  flows  from  the  roots  of  the  Tuba-tree  ;  far 
more  fiery,  far  more  stimulating,  is  the  wine  which 
flashes  in  glass  and  goblet.  The  houris  may  hide 
their  white  bosoms  and  their  rosy  faces,  for  what 
are  they  compared  with  the  earthly  angels  whose 
mundane  charms  intoxicate  the  hearts  of  mortals  ? 
Truly  Muhammad  was  but  an  indifferent  prophet, 
he  did  not  understand  how  to  arrange  paradise  ; 
let  him  but  regard  the  arrangements  of  Mukhtar 
Bey — they  will  show  him  how  that  sort  of  thing 
ought  to  be  managed. 

Muhammad  imagined  that  the  embraces  of  seven 
and  seventy  houris  would  make  an  enraptured  Mos- 
lem eternally  happy.  Why,  the  bungler  forgot  the 
best  part  of  it.  Would  it  not  be  more  satisfactory 

*  The  chief  sanctuary  of  the  Mussulmans  standing  in  the  midst 
of  the  great  mosque  at  Mecca. 


A    TURKISH    PARADISE  47 

if,  now  and  then,  say  once  in  a  thousand  years  or 
so,  the  Moslems  were  to  exchange  their  own  houris 
for  those  of  their  neighbors  ?  In  this  way  the  aroma 
of  brand-new  kisses  would  prevent  their  raptures 
from  growing  stale,  and  the  Paradise  of  Muhammad 
would  be  worth  something  after  all.  With  all  eter- 
nity before  him,  a  man  would  scarcely  mind  waiting 
for  his  own  wives  for  a  paltry  millennium  or  two 
while  he  enjoyed  the  wives  of  his  neighbors,  and 
when  he  returned  to  his  seven  and  seventy  original 
damsels  again,  what  a  pleasant  reunion  it  would  be  ! 

Now  the  Prophet  had  forgotten  to  introduce  this 
novelty  into  his  own  Paradise,  and  Mukhtar  Bey 
was  the  happy  man  to  whom  the  fairy  Malach 
Taraif  whispered  the  idea  during  the  fast  preceding 
the  Feast  of  Bairam  while  he  slept,  and  he  imme- 
diately proceeded  to  discuss  the  matter  with  his 
kinsmen. 

All  three  brothers  lived  under  one  roof,  each  of 
the  three  had  his  own  special  harem,  and  each  of 
them  possessed  in  their  harems  beauties  far  surpass- 
ing what  the  angels  Monkar  and  Nakir  could  prom- 
ise them  in  the  next  world.  After  the  Feast  of 
Bairam,  when  Mukhtar  Bey  had  well  plied  his  breth- 
ren with  good  wine,  he  said  to  them,  "  Let  us  ex- 
change harems  !" 

Sulaiman  Bey  immediately  gave  his  hand  upon  it ; 
Vely  Bey  laughed  at  it  as  a  good  idea  at  first,  but 
afterwards  drew  back.  The  other  two  worthies 
laughed  uproariously  at  his  simplicity,  made  fun  of 
him,  and  proceeded  at  once  to  transfer  to  each  oth- 
er their  respective  damsels,  and  on  the  morrow  and 
the  following  days  aggravated  Vely  by  extolling  be- 
fore him  the  exchanged  odalisks,  each  of  them  con- 


4«  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

fiding  to  him  what  novel  attractions  he  had  dis- 
covered in  this  or  that  bayadere.  Thus  Sulaiman 
could  not  sufficiently  extol  the  extraordinary  brill- 
iance of  the  eyes  of  Mukhtar  Bey's  favorite  damsel, 
while  Mukhtar  protested  that  the  languishing  Jew- 
ish maiden  he  had  got  in  exchange  from  Sulaiman 
quivered  in  his  arms  like  a  dancing  flame. 

Vely  laughed  a  good  deal  over  the  business,  but 
still  continued  to  shake  his  head,  confessing  at  last 
that  the  reason  why  he  did  not  exchange  his  harem 
was  because  it  contained  an  Albanian  damsel  whom 
he  had  neither  purchased  nor  captured,  but  who  had 
come  to  him  of  her  own  accord,  and  whom  he  had 
promised  long  ago  never  to  abandon,  and  her  he 
would  not  give  for  both  their  harems  put  together  ; 
nay,  he  said  he  would  not  give  her  up  for  a  whole 
world  full  of  damsels.  The  two  brethren  thereupon 
assured  Vely  that  if  he  loved  this  particular  damsel 
so  very  much,  he  might  exclude  her  from  the  others 
and  keep  her  for  himself,  and  it  need  make  no  dif- 
ference. Then  Vely  Bey  also  acceded  to  this  frater- 
nal division  of  delights,  and  transferred  his  harem 
also,  with  the  exception  of  Xelianthe". 

Mukhtar  Bey  had  fixed  the  last  night  of  the  great 
Bairam  feast  for  the  entertainment  that  was  to  rival 
Paradise,  inviting  his  brethren  and  the  Prophet 
Muhammad  himself,  in  order  that  he  might  learn 
from  them  how  to  be  happy,  and  might  regulate 
heaven  accordingly.  To  this  end  they  had  a  fourth 
divan  added  to  their  three,  with  its  own  well-ap- 
pointed table  in  front  of  it,  and  bade  the  attendant 
odalisks  be  diligent  in  keeping  the  fourth  goblet 
well  filled,  and  do  their  best  to  entertain  the  invited 
guest.  Mockery  of  religious  subjects  was  no  un- 


A   TURKISH    PARADISE  49 

usual  thing  with  Turkish  magnates  in  those  days. 
Blasphemy  had  gone  so  far  as  to  become  an  open 
scandal ;  popular  fanaticism  and  official  orthodoxy 
made  it  all  the  more  glaring. 

So  the  sons  of  Ali  Pasha  invited  the  Prophet  to 
be  their  guest,  and  had  made  up  their  minds  that  if 
he  did  appear  among  them  he  would  not  be  bored. 

All  the  odalisks  danced  and  sung  before  them 
in  turn,  and  the  brethren  diverted  themselves  by 
judging  which  of  the  damsels  was  the  sweetest  and 
loveliest. 

In  every  song,  in  every  dance,  Rebecca,  Mukhtar 
Bey's  beautiful  Jewish  damsel,  and  the  blue-eyed 
bayadere  Lizza,  who  was  Sulaiman  Bey's  favorite, 
equally  excelled.  It  was  impossible  to  decide  which 
of  the  twain  deserved  the  palm.  At  last  they  were 
made  to  dance  together. 

"  Look  !"  cried  Mukhtar,  his  eyes  sparkling  with 
delight,  "  look  !  didst  ever  behold  a  more  beautiful 
figure  ?  Like  the  flowering  branch  of  the  Ban-tree 
she  sways  to  and  fro.  How  proudly  she  throws  her 
head  back,  and  looks  at  thee  so  languishingly  that 
thou  meltest  away  for  very  rapture  !  Would  that 
her  light  feet  might  dance  all  over  me  ;  would  that 
she  might  encompass  every  part  of  me  like  the  at- 
mosphere !" 

"She  really  is  charming,"  admitted  Sulaiman, 
"  and  if  the  other  were  not  dancing  by  her  side,  she 
would  be  the  first  star  in  the  firmament  of  beauty. 
But  ah  !  one  movement  of  the  other  one  is  worth  all 
the  life  in  her  body.  She  is  but  a  woman,  the  other 
is  a  sylph.  She  kills  you  with  rapture,  the  other 
raises  you  from  the  dead." 

''Thou  are  unjust,  Sulaiman,"  said  Mukhtar; 
4 


50  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

"  thou  dost  judge  only  with  thine  eyes.  If  thou 
wouldst  take  counsel  of  thy  lips,  they  would  speak 
more  truly.  Taste  her  kisses,  and  then  say  which 
of  them  is  the  sweeter." 

With  that  he  beckoned  to  the  two  odalisks.  Re- 
becca, the  lovely  Jewish  damsel,  sank  full  of  amor- 
ous languor  on  Sulaiman's  breast,  while  Lizza,  with 
sylph-like  agility,  sat  her  down  upon  his  knee,  and 
the  intoxicated  Bey,  in  an  access  of  rapture,  kissed 
first  one  and  then  the  other. 

"  Rebecca's  lips  are  more  ardent,"  he  cried,  "  but 
the  kisses  of  Lizza  are  sweeter.  The  kiss  of  Rebecca 
is  like  the  poppy  which  lulls  you  into  sweet  uncon- 
sciousness, but  Lizza's  kiss  is  like  sweet  wine  which 
makes  you  merry." 

"  Lizza's  kiss  may  perchance  be  like  sweet  wine," 
interrupted  Mukhtar,  "but  Rebecca's  kiss  is  like 
heavenly  musk  which  only  the  Blessed  may  partake 
of,  and  those  who  partake  thereof  are  blessed." 

And  with  that  Mukhtar  caught  up  both  the  oda- 
lisks in  his  arms,  that  he  might  pronounce  judgment 
as  to  the  sweetness  of  their  lips.  It  was  an  envi- 
able process.  The  contending  parties  themselves 
were  in  doubt  as  to  which  of  themselves  should  ob- 
tain a  verdict.  At  length  they  called  upon  Vely 
Bey  to  decide — Vely,  who  was  now  lying  blissfully 
asleep  beside  them  on  the  divan,  overcome  with 
wine,  his  head  in  Xelianthe's  bosom.  His  two  breth- 
ren awoke  him  that  he  might  judge  between  them 
as  to  the  sweetness  of  rival  kisses. 

It  took  a  good  deal  of  trouble  to  make  the  stupid- 
ly fuddled  Bey  understand  what  was  required  of 
him,  and  when  he  did  understand,  the  only  an- 
swer he  made  was,  "  Xelianthe's  kisses  are  the  sweet- 


A   TURKISH    PARADISE  51 

est ;"  and  with  that  he  embraced  his  fav.orite  damsel 
once  more  and,  reclining  his  head  on  her  bosom, 
went  off  to  sleep  again. 

Then  cried  Mukhtar,  "  Wherefore  dost  thou  ask 
for  his  judgment,  when  amongst  us  sits  the  Prophet 
himself?  Let  him  judge  between  us." 

With  these  words  he  pointed  to  the  empty  place 
which  had  been  left  for  a  fourth  person.  Rich  meats 
were  piled  up  there  on  gold  and  silver  plate,  and 
wine  sparkled  in  transparent  crystal. 

"  Come,  Muhammad  !"  exclaimed  Mukhtar,  ad- 
dressing the  vacant  place;  "thou  in  thy  lifetime 
didst  love  many  a  beauteous  woman,  and  in  thy 
Paradise  there  is  enough  and  to  spare  of  beauty.  I 
summon  thee  to  appear  before  us.  Here  is  a  dispute 
between  us  two  as  to  whose  damsel  is  the  sweeter 
and  the  lovelier.  Thou  hast  seen  them  dance,  thou 
hast  heard  them  sing;  now  taste  of  their  kisses !" 

With  that  he  beckoned  to  the  two  damsels,  and 
they  sat  down,  one  on  each  side  of  the  empty  divan, 
and  made  as  if  they  were  embracing  a  shape  sitting 
between  them,  and  filled  the  air  with  their  burning, 
fragrant  kisses. 

"  Well,  let  us  hear  thy  verdict,  Muhammad  !"  cried 
Mukhtar,  with  drunken  bravado  ;  and,  taking  the 
crystal  goblet  from  the  empty  place  and  raising  it 
in  the  air,  looked  around  him  with  a  flushed,  defiant 
face,  and  exclaimed,  "  Come  !  drink  of  the  wine  of 
this  goblet  her  health  to  whom  thou  awardest  the 
prize  !" 

Ali  Pasha,  shocked  and  filled  with  horror  at  the 
shamelessly  impudent  words  he  heard  from  his 
hiding-place,  drew  a  pistol  from  his  girdle  and  soft- 
ly raised  the  trigger. 


52  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

"-Drink,  Muhammad  !"  bellowed  Mukhtar,  raising 
the  goblet  on  high,  "  drink  to  the  health  of  the 
triumphant  damsel !  Which  shall  it  be,  Rebecca  or 
Lizza?" 

At  that  same  instant  a  loud  report  rang  through 
the  room,  and  the  upraised  crystal  goblet  was  shiv- 
ered into  a  thousand  fragments  in  Mukhtar's  hand. 
Every  one  leaped  from  his  place  in  terror.  But 
whichever  way  they  looked  there  was  nothing  to  be 
seen.  The  only  persons  in  the  room  were  the  three 
brothers  and  the  damsels.  Only  at  the  spot  from 
whence  the  shot  had  proceeded  a  little  round  cloud 
of  bluish  smoke  was  visible,  which  sluggishly  dis- 
persed. Nobody  present  carried  weapons,  and 
there  was  no  door  or  window  there  by  which  any 
one  could  have  got  in. 

From  the  minarets  outside  the  muezzins  pro- 
claimed the  prayer  of  dawn  :  "  La  illah  il  Allah  ! 
Muhammad  razul  Allah  !" — "There  is  no  God  but 
God,  and  Muhammad  is  His  Prophet !" 

AH  Pasha  did  not  pursue  the  fugitives.  That  day 
he  was  praying  all  the  morning.  He  locked  himself 
up  in  his  inmost  apartments,  that  nobody  might  see 
what  he  was  doing.  He  now  did  what  he  had  not 
done  for  seventy  years — he  wept.  For  a  whole  hour 
his  inflexible  soul  was  broken.  So  that  woman 
whom  he  had  loved  better  than  life  itself,  she  for- 
sooth had  given  the  first  signal  of  approaching  mis- 
fortune, the  first  sign  of  the  coming  struggle  !  Let 
it  come  !  Let  her  veil  be  the  first  banner  to  lead 
an  army  against  Janina  !  Tepelenti  would  not  at- 
tempt to  stay  her  in  her  flight.  For  one  long  hour 
he  thought  of  her,  and  this  hour  was  an  hour  of 


A  TURKISH    PARADISE  53 

weeping  ;  and  then  he  bethought  him  of  the  ap- 
proaching tempest  which  the  prophetic  voice  had 
warned  him  of,  and  his  heart  turned  to  stone  at  the 
thought.  Ali  Pasha  was  not  the  man  to  cringe  be- 
fore danger  ;  no,  he  was  wont  to  meet  it  face  to  face, 
and  ask  of  it  why  it  had  tarried  so  long.  He  used 
even  to  send  occasionally  for  the  ninrethullita  der- 
vish, who  had  been  living  a  long  time  in  the  fortress, 
and  question  him  concerning  the  future.  It  must  not 
he  supposed,  indeed,  that  Tepelenti  ever  took  advice 
from  anybody  ;  but  he  would  listen  to  the  words  of 
lunatics  and  soothsayers,  and  liked  to  learn  from 
magicians  and  astrologers,  and  their  sayings  were 
not  without  influence  upon  his  actions. 

The  dervish  was  a  decrepit  old  man.  Nobody 
knew  how  old  he  really  was ;  it  was  said  that  only 
by  magic  did  he  keep  himself  alive  at  all.  Every 
evening  they  laid  him  down  on  plates  of  copper  and 
rubbed  invigorating  balsam  into  his  withered  skel- 
eton, and  so  he  lived  on  from  day  to  day. 

Two  dumb  eunuchs  now  brought  him  in  to  Tepe- 
lenti, and,  bending  his  legs  beneath  him,  propped 
him  up  in  front  of  the  pasha. 

(i  Sikham,"  said  Ali  to  the  dervish,  "  I  feel  the 
approach  of  evil  days.  My  sword  rusted  in  its 
sheath  in  a  single  night.  My  buckler,  which  I 
covered  with  gold,  has  cracked  from  end  to  end. 
A  severed  head,  which  hid  itself  away  from  me 
so  that  I  could  not  find  it,  came  forth  to  me  at 
night  and  spoke  to  me  of  my  death  ;  and  in  my 
dreams  I  see  my  sons  make  free  with  the  Prophet. 
I  ask  thee  not  what  all  these  things  signify. 
That  I  know.  Just  as  surely  as  in  winter-time  the 
hosts  of  rooks  and  crows  resort  to  the  roofs  of  the 


54  THE    I.ION    OF   JANINA 

mosques,  so  surely  shall  my  sworn  enemies  fall  upon 
me.  I  am  old  compared  with  them,  and  it  is  a  thing 
unheard  of  among  the  Osmanlis  that  a  man  should 
reach  the  age  of  nine  and  seventy  and  still  be  rich 
and  mighty.  Let  them  come  !  But  one  thing  I 
would  know — who  will  be  the  first  to  attack  me? 
Tell  me  his  name." 

The  dervish  thereupon  caused  a  wooden  board  to 
be  placed  before  him  on  which  meats  were  wont  to 
be  carried  ;  then  he  put  upon  it  an  empty  glass  gob- 
let, and  across  the  glass  he  laid  a  thin  bamboo  cane. 
Next  he  wrote  upon  the  wooden  board  the  twenty- 
nine  letters  of  the  Turkish  alphabet,  and  then, 
thrice  prostrating  himself  to  the  ground  with  wide- 
extended  arms,  he  fixed  his  eyes  steadily  upon  the 
centre  of  the  goblet. 

In  about  half  an  hour  the  goblet  began  to  tinkle 
as  if  some  one  were  rubbing  his  wet  finger  along  its 
rim.  This  tinkling  grew  stronger  and  stronger, 
louder  and  louder,  till  at  last  the  goblet  moved  up 
and  down  on  the  wooden  board,  and  began  revolv- 
ing along  with  the  light  cane  placed  across  it,  re-, 
volving  at  last  so  rapidly  that  it  was  impossible  to 
discern  the  cane  upon  it  at  all. 

Then,  quite  suddenly,  the  dervish  raised  his  fin- 
gers from  the  table,  and  the  goblet  immediately 
stopped.  The  point  of  the  cane  stood  opposite  the 
letter  gJiain — G.* 

"  That  signifies  the  first  letter  of  his  name,"  said 
the  dervish— "G!" 

*  The  marvels  of  our  modern  table-turning  and  table-tapping 
spirits,  and  all  the  wonders  of  this  sort,  were  known  to  the  Arab 
dervishes  long  ago. — J6KAI. 


A   TURKISH    PARADISE  55 

And  then  the  mysterious  operation  was  repeated, 
and  the  magic  stick  spelled  out  the  name  letter  by 
letter:  "G— a — s— k— h— o  B— e— y."  At  the  last 
letter  the  goblet  stopped  short  and  would  move  no 
more. 

"I  know  no  man  of  that  name,"  said  Ali,  amazed 
that  he  whose  name  was  so  world-renowned  was  to 
tremble  before  one  whose  name  he  had  never  heard 
before. 

"Where  does  the  fellow  live?"  he  inquired  of  the 
dervish. 

The  magic  jugglery  was  set  going  again,  and  now 
the  dancing  goblet  spelled  out  the  name,  "  Stambul." 

That  was  enough.  Ali  beckoned  to  the  eunuchs 
to  take  the  dervish  away  again. 

Ali  thereupon  summoned  forty  Albanian  soldiers 
from  the  garrison,  and  gave  to  each  one  of  them 
twenty  ducats. 

"This,"  said  he,  "is  only  earnest  money.  I  want 
a  man  put  to  death  whose  name  and  dwelling-place 
I  know.  His  name  is  Gaskho  Bey,  and  he  lives  in 
Stambul.  This  man's  head  is  worth  as  many  gold 
pieces  as  there  are  miles  between  him  and  me.  He 
who  brings  the  head  can  measure  the  distance  and 
be  paid  for  it.  The  first  who  brings  but  the  report 
of  his  death  shall  receive  two  hundred  ducats ;  he 
who  slays  him,  a  thousand." 

The  Albanians  consulted  together  for  a  brief 
moment,  and  then  intimated  that  if  a  bey  of  the 
name  of  Gaskho  really  existed,  he  was  as  good  as 
dead  already. 

Towards  mid-day  Ali  sent  for  his  sons.  He  said 
not  a  word  to  them  of  the  anxieties,  the  visions, 
and  the  apparitions  of  the  night  before,  but  made 


56  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

them,  after  they  had  respectfully  kissed  his  hands, 
sit  down  all  around  him.  Mukhtar  Bey  he  invited 
to  sit  down  on  his  left  hand,  Vely  on  his  right,  and 
Sulaiman  directly  opposite. 

He  addressed  himself  first  of  all  to  Sulaiman. 

"Thou  art  the  youngest  and  boldest,"  said  he. 
"To-morrow  thou  must  go  to  sea  and  take  three 
ships  with  thee.  These  ships  thou  must  take  to 
Sicily,  load  them  there  with  sulphur,  and  return 
without  losing  an  instant." 

"Oh,  my  father  !"  replied  Sulaiman,  "the tempest 
is  now  abroad  upon  the  sea.  Who  would  venture 
now  with  a  ship  upon  the  billows  ?  All  the  monsters 
of  the  ocean  are  now  running  upon  the  surface  seek- 
ing whom  they  may  devour,  and  the  phantom  ship, 
with  her  shadowy  rigging  and  her  shadowy  crew, 
pursues  her  zigzag  course  across  the  waters." 

Ali  Pasha  said  no  more,  but  turned  towards 
Mukhtar  Bey. 

"Thou  art  the  most  crafty,"  said  he;  "go  then 
to  the  captains  of  the  Suliotes  and  invite  them  to 
assemble  with  their  forces  at  Janina  with  all  de- 
spatch. Spare  neither  promises  nor  assurances  nor 
fair  winds." 

Mukhtar  Bey's  face  turned  quite  angry,  and, 
wagging  his  head,  still  heavy  from  his  overnight 
debauch,  he  answered,  sullenly  :  "In  the  mountains 
the  snow  is  now  thawing ;  every  stream  is  swollen 
into  a  river  ;  naught  but  a  bird  can  find  a  place  for 
its  foot  on  the  dry  ground  ;  how,  then,  can  armies 
move  hither  and  thither?  Wait  for  a  week,  till  the 
inundations  have  subsided.  Truly  there  is  no  en- 
emy on  thy  borders.  In  thy  whole  realm  there  is 
not  §p  much  as  a,  rat  to  nibble  at  thy  walls.  What 


A   TURKISH    PARADISE  57 

dost  thou  want  now  with  chariots  and  armed 
men  ?" 

AH  now  turned  to  Vely,  who  was  sitting  on  his 
right  hand.  "Go  thou  over  to  Misrim,"  said  he, 
"and  purchase  for  me  two  thousand  horses;  a 
thousand  of  them  shall  be  meet  for  war-chargers, 
and  a  thousand  for  drawing  guns." 

"  Oh,  my  father  !"  answered  Vely,  who  was  the 
eldest  and  wisest  of  Ali's  sons,  "  I  will  not  object  to 
thy  command  that  the  simoon  has  now  begun  in 
Misrim,  before  whose  burning,  suffocating  breath 
every  living  creature  is  forced  to  fly.  I  reck  little 
of  that,  but  the  horses,  thy  precious  horses,  will 
perish.  And,  moreover,  I  would  ask  of  thee  one 
question.  Wherefore  dost  thou  get  together  a  host, 
and  horses  and  guns,  without  cause,  and  with  no 
danger  threatening  thee?  Will  not  all  these  war- 
like preparations  excite  the  rage  of  the  Padishah 
against  thee,  and  so  thy  preparing  against  an  im- 
agined peril  will  saddle  thee  with  a  real  war  ?" 

Ali  Pasha  laughed  aloud — a  very  unusual  habit 
with  him. 

"  Well,"  said  he,  "  it  is  for  me  to  prove  to  you, 
I  suppose,  that  you  are  all  wrong  in  your  calcula- 
tions. Dine  with  me  and  be  merry.  After  dinner 
you  shall  see  that  the  sea  is  not  stormy,  that  the 
rivers  are  not  in  flood,  and  that  the  simoon  is  not 
suffocating.  I  have  a  talisman  which  will  convince 
you  thereof." 

So  he  entertained  his  sons  till  late  in  the  evening, 
and  immediately  after  dinner  he  whispered  to  one 
of  the  dumb  eunuchs,  and  then  he  took  his  sons 
with  him  into  the  red  tower,  the  doors  of  which 
were  left  wide  open.  He  stopped  short  with  them  in- 


5§  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

one  of  the  rooms,  the  solitary  semicircular  window 
of  which  looked  out  upon  the  lake  of  Acheruz. 
The  window  was  guarded  by  an  iron  grating.  Here 
he  sat  down  with  them  to  smoke  his  narghily  and 
sip  his  coffee.  The  sons  would  have  preferred  to 
mount  upon  the  roof  of  the  tower,  where  the  fresh 
air  and  the  fine  view  would  have  made  their  siesta 
perfect  ;  but  Ali  facetiously  observed  that  in  the 
open  air  cold  and  hot  winds  were  just  then  blowing 
together  at  the  same  time,  and  he  did  not  want  the 
simoon  to  make  them  sweat  or  the  trade-winds  to 
make  them  shiver. 

As  they  were  sipping  their  coffee  there  the 
splashing  of  oars  was  audible  beneath  the  tower, 
and  the  sons  beheld  three  large,  flat-bottomed  boats 
propelled  upon  the  surface  of  the  water,  in  which 
sat  the  damsels  of  their  harems  ;  the  boats  were 
rowed  by  muscular  eunuchs. 

The  faces  of  the  three  beys  lighted  up  when  they 
saw  the  damsels  being  rowed  on  the  water,  and 
Mukhtar  Bey  whispered  roguishly  in  Sulaiman'a 
ear,  "Shall  we  make  the  old  man  also  one  of  our 
party  ?" 

Ali  overheard  the  whisper,  and  replied,  with  a 
smile,  "  Truly  your  damsels  are  most  beauteous  " — 
here  he  stroked  his  white  beard  from  end  to  end— 
"  I  am  not  surprised,  therefore,  that  you  like  to  stay 
at  home  here  and  call  the  wind  hot  and  cold,  though 
it  is  nothing  but  the  breath  of  Allah,  and  what  comes 
from  God  cannot  be  bad.  But  your  damsels  are 
beautiful,  of  that  there  can  be  no  doubt.  Now,  last 
night  I  dreamt  a  dream.  Before  me  stood  the 
Prophet,  and  he  told  me  how  you  had  challenged 
•him  to  say  which  of  your  damsels  was  the  sweeter 


A    TURKISH    PARADISE  59 

and  the  more  beautiful."  (Here  the  sons  regarded 
each  other,  full  of  fear  and  amazement.)  "  The 
Prophet  replied,"  continued  Ali,  "  that  it  was  not 
meet  that  he  should  come  to  your  damsels ;  they 
should  rather  go  to  him.  So  I  mean  to  send  them 
to  Paradise." 

"What  doest  thou  ?"  cried  all  three  sons,  horror- 
stricken. 

The  only  answer  Ali  gave  was  to  give  a  long 
shrill  whistle,  at  which  signal  the  eunuchs  drew 
out  the  plugs  from  holes  secretly  bored  at  the  bot- 
tom of  the  three  boats,  leaping  at  the  same  time 
into  the  water,  and  leaving  the  boats  in  the  middle 
of  the  lake. 

The  damsels  shrieked  with  terror  as  the  water 
began  to  rush  into  the  boats  from  all  sides.  The 
air  was  filled  with  cries  of  agony. 

Mukhtar  rushed  madly  to  the  door  and  found  it 
locked.  With  impotent  violence  he  attempted  to 
burst  it  open.  Sulaiman  meanwhile  tore  away  at 
the  iron  window-grating  with  both  hands,  as  if  he 
fancied  himself  capable  of  pulling  down  the  whole 
of  the  vast  building  by  the  sheer  strength  of  his 
arms.  The  blue-eyed  Albanian  girl  and  the  lan- 
guishing Jewish  damsel,  with  the  fear  of  death  in 
their  eyes,  looked  up  at  the  closed  window  ;  the 
waves  had  already  begun  to  swallow  their  beautiful 
limbs. 

Only  Vely  Bey  remained  motionless.  He,  at  any 
rate,  had  not  sinned.  He  had  not  angered  the 
Prophet  in  that  orgie  of  amorous  rivalry.  He  had 
loved  one  only,  by  her  only  had  he  been  loved,  and 
she,  yes,  she  was  perishing  there  among  the  others  ! 

The  boats  sank  deeper  and  deeper  ;  nothing  could 


60  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

be  heard  but  the  cries  of  the  drowning  wretches  in 
all  the  accents  of  despair.  The  two  sons  saw  their 
damsels  dying  before  their  eyes,  and  were  unable 
to  rush  out  and  save  them ;  not  even  one  could  be 
rescued.  One  more  shriek  of  woe,  and  then  the 
boats  sank.  For  a  few  moments  the  surface  of 
the  water  was  covered  with  bright  gauze  veils 
and  shiny  turbans  and  white  limbs  and  dishevelled 
tresses,  and  then  a  few  solitary  turbans  floated  on 
the  water. 

Sulaiman,  sobbing  in  despair,  fell  down  in  a  heap 
close  by  the  window,  while  Mukhtar  fell  madly  on 
the  door  and  kicked  it  with  all  his  might,  as  if  he 
would  drown  in  the  din  the  cries  for  help  of  the 
perishing  damsels.  Only  Vely  Bey  looked  in  bitter 
silence  upon  the  detestable  waves,  which  within  a 
minute  had  swallowed  three  heavens. 

Far,  far  away  on  the  crest  of  the  rising  waves  a 
black  object  appeared  to  be  swimming.  What  was 
it  ?  Perhaps  one  of  the  damsels.  One  moment  it 
vanished  in  the  wave-valleys,  the  next  it  appeared 
again  on  the  top  of  a  high  ridge  of  water.  What 
could  it  be  ?  But  farther  and  farther  it  receded. 
Perchance  some  one  had  escaped,  after  all.  Greek 
girls  are  good  swimmers. 

And  now  AH  Pasha  arose  from  his  place  and  said, 
with  a  smile,  to  his  sons  : 

"  Methinks  that  neither  the  storms  of  ocean,  nor 
the  swollen  waters,  nor  the  breath  of  the  simoon 
will  now  appear  so  terrible  to  you  as  they  did  a  few 
hours  ago.  Depart  now  with  all  speed.  When  you 
return  you  will  find  new  harems  here,  which  will 
make  you  forget  the  old  ones."  And  with  that  he 
quitted  them. 


A   TURKISH    PARADISE  6l 

Sulaiman  and  Mukhtar  immediately  went  their 
way.  Woe  to  whomsoever  shall  now  give  them  a 
pretext  for  wreaking  their  vengeance  upon  him  ! 

But  Vely  Bey  remained  there  looking  out  upon 
the  water,  and  as  the  evening  grew  darker  he 
thought  upon  Ali  Pasha.  His  brothers  had  loaded 
their  father  with  curses  ;  he  had  not  said  a  word. 
They  will  soon  make  their  peace  with  their  father 
— he  never  will.* 

*  It  is  a  fact  that  Ali  drowned  the  harems  of  his  sons  in  the  lake 
of  Acheruz  because  he  feared  their  excessive  influence. — JOKAI. 


CHAPTER   IV 
GASKHO      BEY 

THE  lightning  strikes  to  the  earth  the  man  that 
flies  from  it.  Ill  luck  is  a  venomous  dog,  which  runs 
after  him  who  would  escape  it. 

Ali  Pasha's  band  of  Albanians,  on  arriving  at 
Stambul,  began  to  make  inquiries  about  Gaskho 
Bey. 

He  turned  out  to  be  a  good  honest  man,  by  pro- 
fession an  inspector  of  the  ichoglanler  of  the  Se- 
raglio, and  a  particularly  mild  and  peaceful  Mussul- 
man to  boot.  In  temperament  he  was  somewhat 
phlegmatic,  with  a  leaning  to  melancholy.  A  pal- 
mist would  have  told  you  that  the  sympathetic  line 
on  the  palm  of  his  hand  was  so  little  prominent  as 
to  be  scarcely  visible,  whereas  on  Tepelenti's  palm 
there  was  such  an  abundant  concourse  of  sympa- 
thetic lines  that  they  even  ran  over  on  to  the  back 
of  the  hand.  In  those  days  the  Mussulmans  fre- 
quently diverted  themselves  with  such  superstitious 
games  as  palmistry. 

As  to  his  figure — well,  Gaskho  Bey  might  have 
stood  for  a  perfect  model  of  the  Farnese  Hercules ; 
his  huge  shoulders  were  almost  out  of  proportion 
with  the  rest  of  his  body.  He  could  stop  the  wing 
of  a  windmill  with  one  hand  ;  on  the  birthday  of 
the  Sultan's  heir  he  hoisted  a  six-pound  cannon  on 


GASKHO    BEY  63 

to  his  shoulders  and  fired  it  off,  and  he  could  break 
a  hard  piastre  in  two  when  he  was  in  a  good  humor. 

It  could  not  be  said  that  he  had  hitherto  used 
this  terrible  strength  to  injure  any  one  ;  on  the 
contrary,  he  was  universally  known  as  the  most 
forbearing  of  men.  The  pages  of  the  court,  whom 
he  taught  to  fence,  would  sometimes  in  the  midst 
of  a  lesson,  as  if  by  accident,  but  really  from  sheer 
petulance,  batter  him  with  their  blunt  swords  till 
they  rang  again,  and  Gaskho  Bey  would  always 
reprimand  them,  not  for  striking  him  but  for  strik- 
ing so  clumsily.  He  had  never  gone  to  war,  and 
those  who  did  not  send  him  thither  flattered  them- 
selves not  a  little  on  their  humanity,  for  if  it  came 
to  a  serious  tussle  there  was  really  no  knowing 
what  damage  he  might  not  do. 

At  home  he  was  the  gentlest  paterfamilias  con- 
ceivable. You  would  frequently  find  him  on  all- 
fours,  with  his  little  four-year-old  son,  Sidali,  riding 
on  his  back,  and  persecuting  his  father  with  all 
sorts  of  barbarities.  He  did  nothing  all  day  but 
teach  the  pages  of  the  Seraglio  games  and  exer- 
cises, and  at  home  he  made  paper  birds  for  his  own 
little  boy,  flew  kites  for  and  played  blind  man's 
buff  with  him.  Whatever  time  he  could  spare 
from  these  occupations  he  would  spend  in  leaning 
out  of  the  window  of  the  Summer  Palace  overlook- 
ing the  Gokk-sii,  or  Sweet  Waters,  and  looking  about 
him  a  bit  with  a  pipe  in  his  mouth,  the  stem  of 
which  reached  to  the  ground,  and  if  any  one  had 
asked  him  while  so  engaged  what  he  was  looking 
at,  he  would  assuredly  have  answered,  "  Nothing  at 
all." 

Now  there  were  always  the  liveliest  goings-on  in 


64  THE   LION   OF  JANINA 

the  Gokk-sii  Park  of  an  evening.  The  harems  of 
the  beys  and  pashas  who  dwelt  on  its  banks  took 
the  air  there  under  the  plantain-trees,  and  swung 
and  danced  and  sang ;  the  wandering  Persian  jug- 
glers exhibited  their  hocus-pocus,  and  the  magnifi- 
cent Janissaries  resorted  thither  to  fight  with  one 
another.  Every  Friday  afternoon  whole  bands  of 
these  rival  warriors  flocked  thither  as  if  to  a  com- 
mon battle-field,  and  frequently  left  two  or  three 
corpses  on  the  scene  of  their  diversions. 

Gaskho  Bey  appeared  to  take  very  little  notice 
of  all  these  things,  his  chibook  curled  comfortably 
on  the  ground  beneath  him.  At  every  pull  at  it 
large  light -blue  clouds  of  smoke  rolled  upwards 
from  its  crater,  taking  all  manner  of  misty  shapes 
and  forms  till  they  disappeared  through  the  win- 
dow, and  Gaskho  Bey  buried  himself  in  the  con- 
templation of  these  smoky  phantasms  as  deeply  as 
if  he  were  intent  on  writing  a  dissertation  on  the 
philosophy  of  pipe-smoking,  oblivious  of  the  fact 
that  below  the  very  house  in  which  he  was  sit- 
ting two  Albanian  soldiers,  in  high-peaked,  broad- 
brimmed  caps  and  coarse  black  woollen  mantles, 
who  seemed  to  be  taking  the  greatest  possible  in- 
terest in  him  and  trying  to  get  as  near  him  as  they 
could,  had  already  strolled  past  for  the  third  time, 
always  separating  and  going  in  different  directions, 
somewhat  nervously,  if  they  perceived  any  one 
coming  towards  them. 

Only  now  and  then  a  sly  expression  on  Gaskho's 
face  betrayed  the  fact  that  he  was  conscious  of  some- 
thing going  on  behind  his  back.  There  little  Sidali 
was  amusing  himself,  while  Gaskho  Bey  was  leaning 
out  of  the  window,  by  kneeling  on  the  ottoman  be- 


GASKHO    BEY  65 

hind,  and  tickling  the  uplifted  naked  soles  of  his 
father's  feet  with  a  blunt  arrow.  Sometimes  the 
arrow  would  slip  and  come  plumping  down  on  Gask- 
ho's  head,  and  then  the  bey  would  smile  indulgently 
at  the  naughtiness  of  his  little  son. 

And  now  the  evening  was  falling,  and  the  crowd 
beneath  the  plantain-trees  grew  thinner.  The  two 
Albanians,  side  by  side,  again  came  towards  Gaskho 
Bey,  who  now  puffed  forth  such  clouds  of  smoke 
from  his  chibook  that  one  could  see  neither  heaven 
nor  earth  because  of  them.  But  the  two  Albanian 
mercenaries  could  make  him  out  very  well,  and  both 
of  them  standing  a  little  way  from  the  window  drew 
forth  their  pistols,  and  one  of  them  standing  on  the 
right  hand  and  the  other  on  the  left,  they  both 
aimed  at  Gaskho  Bey's  temples  at  a  distance  of 
three  paces. 

But  little  Sidali  was  too  quick  for  them,  for  he 
now  gave  his  father  such  a  poke  with  the  arrow 
that  the  latter,  provoked  partly  by  the  pain  and 
partly  by  the  tickling,  sharply  turned  his  head,  and 
the  same  instant  there  was  the  report  of  two  shots, 
and  two  bullets — one  on  the  right  hand  and  one  on 
the  left — buried  themselves  in  the  window-sill. 

Gaskho's  movement  was  so  unexpected  that  the 
two  Albanian  braves,  who  had  imagined  that  their 
bullets  must  of  necessity  have  met  each  other  in  the 
middle  of  the  bey's  brain,  were  so  terrified  when  they 
saw  him  still  sitting  there  unwounded,  that  they 
stood  as  if  nailed  to  the  earth.  Indeed,  before  they 
could  make  up  their  minds  to  fly,  Gaskho  was  already 
outside  the  window,  upon  them  with  a  single  bound, 
and  immediately  seizing  the  pair  of  them  with  his 
terrible  fists,  flung  them  to  the  ground  as  if  he 
5 


66  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

were  playing  with  a  couple  of  dummies,  and  without 
wasting  so  much  as  a  word  upon  them,  tied  them 
together  with  their  own  leather  belts,  so  that  on  the 
arrival  of  the  members  of  his  own  family,  who  flew 
to  the  spot,  alarmed  by  Sidali's  shrieks,  the  two  hired 
assassins  lay  half  dead  and  all  of  a  heap  upon  the 
ground,  for  Gaskho  Bey's  grip  had  wellnigh  broken 
all  their  bones. 

They  were  conveyed  at  once  to  the  Kapu-Kiaja, 
and  Gaskho  Bey  went  too.  For  a  long  time  he  was 
unable  to  contain  himself,  and  bellowed  out  all  along 
the  road,  "  I  never  heard  of  anything  like  it — never  !" 

"  It  is  an  unheard-of  case,  sir,"  said  he,  on  arriv- 
ing at  the  Kapu-Kiaja's.  "  To  furtively  shoot  at  a 
peaceful  Mussulman  when  he  is  smoking  his  pipe 
and  amusing  himself  with  his  children,  I  never  heard 
the  like.  If  any  one  wants  to  kill  me,  he  might  at 
least,  I  think,  let  me  know  beforehand,  so  that  I  may 
perform  my  ablutions,  say  my  prayers,  and  take  leave 
of  my  children.  But  just  when  I  am  smoking  my 
chibook  ! — I  never  heard  of  such  a  thing  !" 

It  was  plain  that  what  he  took  to  heart  the  most 
was  that  they  should  have  tried  to  shoot  him  while 
he  was  smoking  his  chibook. 

The  Kapu-Kiaja,  on  the  other  hand,  looked  upon 
the  case  from  another  point  of  view.  To  him  it  was  a 
matter  of  comparative  indifference  whether  the  deed 
was  attempted  before  or  after  prayers.  Why,  he 
wanted  to  know,  should  these  madmen  run  amuck 
of  their  fellow-men  at  all?  He  therefore  asked  the 
assassins  who  had  set  them  on  to  murder  Gaskho 
Bey.  They,  at  the  very  first  stroke  of  the  bamboo, 
made  a  clean  breast  of  it,  and  threw  the  blame  on 
Tepelenti. 


GASKHO    BEY  67 

At  first  the  Kapu-Kiaja  regarded  this  confession 
as  incredible.  Why,  indeed,  should  Tepelenti  be 
wrath  with  Gaskho  Bey,  who  knew  nothing  at  all 
of  Ali  except  by  report?  Nay,  he  greatly  revered 
him  as  a  valiant  warrior,  and  had  never  said  a  single 
word  to  his  discredit. 

Nevertheless,  the  two  assassins  not  only  stuck  to 
their  confession,  but  maintained  that  besides  them- 
selves eight  and  thirty  other  soldiers  had  been  sent 
to  Stambul  by  Ali  on  the  self -same  mission. 

Ciauses  were  immediately  sent  to  every  quarter 
of  the  city  to  seize  the  described  Albanians.  Five 
or  six  of  them  hid  or  escaped,  but  the  rest  were 
captured. 

The  confessions  of  these  men  were  practically 
unanimous.  Every  circumstance  of  the  affair,  the 
amount  of  the  promised  reward,  the  words  spoken 
on  the  occasion — everything,  in  fact,  corresponded 
so  exactly  that  no  doubt  could  possibly  remain 
that  Tepelenti  had  actually  sent  them  out  to  mur- 
der Gaskho  Bey. 

The  affair  made  a  great  stir  everywhere.  Ali 
Pasha  was  as  well  known  in  Stambul  as  Gaskho  Bey. 
The  former  was  as  famous  for  his  power  and  riches, 
his  envy  and  revengefulness,  as  was  the  latter  for 
his  strength  and  gentleness,  his  sympathy  and  ten- 
derness. 

The  great  men  of  the  palace,  jealous  for  a  long 
time  of  Ali's  greatness,  brought  the  matter  before 
the  Divan,  and  great  debates  ensued  as  to  what 
course  should  be  taken  against  this  mighty  pro- 
tector of  hired  assassins.  And  for  a  long  time  the 
opinions  of  the  counsellors  of  the  cupolaed  chamber 
were  divided.  Some  were  for  taking  Ali  by  the 


68  THE   LION   OF  JANINA 

beard  and  despatching  him  there  and  then.  Others 
were  for  advising  Gaskho  Bey  to  be  content  with 
seeing  the  heads  of  the  Arnaut  assassins  rolling  in 
the  dust  before  the  Pavilion  of  Justice,  and  at  the 
same  time  privately  informing  AH  that  if  he  were 
wise  he  would  waste  neither  his  money  nor  his  pow- 
der on  such  quiet,  harmless  men  as  Gaskho  Bey, 
who  had  never  done,  and  never  meant  in  future  to 
do,  him  any  harm. 

The  latter  alternative  was  the  opinion  of  the  wiser 
heads,  and  among  these  wiser  ones  was  the  Sultan 
himself. 

"AH  is  my  sharp  sword,"  said  Mahmud.  "If  my 
sword  wounds  any  one  accidentally,  and  without  my 
consent,  is  that  any  reason  for  snapping  it  in  twain  ?" 

Nevertheless,  the  enemies  of  the  pasha  kept  goad- 
ing Gaskho  on  to  demand  satisfaction  of  AH  per- 
sonally. The  worthy  giant,  hearing  his  own  name 
on  everybody's  lips  for  weeks  together,  grew  as  wild 
as  a  baited  heifer,  and  began  to  believe  that  he  was 
a  famous  man,  that  he  alone  was  ordained  to  clip 
the  wings  of  the  tyrant  of  Epirus,  and  at  last  was 
so  absorbed  by  his  dreams  of  greatness  that  when 
he  had  to  give  the  usual  lessons  to  the  youths  of 
the  Seraglio  he  trounced  them  all,  in  his  distrac- 
tion, as  severely  as  if  they  had  been  the  soldiers  of 
AH  Pasha. 

The  pacific  Viziers  promised  him  a  house,  a  gar- 
den, beautiful  horses,  and  still  more  beautiful  slaves. 
But  all  would  not  do  ;  what  he  did  want,  he  said, 
was  the  head  of  Tepelenti,  and  he  cried  to  Heaven 
against  them  for  their  procrastination. 

But  Sultan  Mahmud  was  a  wise  man.  He  had 
no  need  to  consult  star-gazers  or  magicians,  or  even 


GASKHO    BEY  69 

the  caverns  of  Seleucia,  as  to-  the  future,  in  order 
to  discover  and  discern  the  storm  whose  signs  were 
already  visible  in  the  sky. 

"  Ye  know  not  Ali,  and  ye  know  not  me  also,"  he 
said  to  those  who  urged  him  to  pronounce  judg- 
ment against  Ali.  "  If  I  were  to  say,  'Ali  must  per- 
ish !'  perish  he  would,  even  if  my  palaces  came 
crashing  down  and  half  the  realm  were  destroyed 
in  consequence.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  Ali  said 
'  No  !'  he  would  assuredly  never  submit,  and  would 
rather  turn  the  whole  realm  upsidedown,  till  not 
one  stone  remained  upon  another,  than  surrender 
himself.  Therefore  ye  know  not  what  ye  want  when 
ye  wish  to  see  Ali  and  me  at  war  with  one  an- 
other." 

The  conspirators,  however,  were  not  content  with 
this,  but  distributed  some  silver  money  among  the 
Janissaries,  and  egged  them  on  to  appear  before  the 
palace  of  the  Kapu-Kiaja  and  demand  Ali's  head. 

The  Kiaja,  warned  in  good  time  of  the  approach- 
ing storm,  took  refuge  in  the  interior  of  the  Se- 
raglio, which  was  speedily  barricaded  against  the 
Janissaries,  and  the  mouths  of  the  cannons  attached 
to  the  gates  were  exhibited  for  their  delectation. 
As  it  did  not  meet-the  views  of  the  Janissaries  just 
then  to  approach  any  nearer  to  the  cannons,  they 
gratified  their  fury  by  setting  fire  to  the  city  and 
burning  down  a  whole  quarter  of  it,  for  they  con- 
sidered it  no  business  of  theirs  to  put  out  the 
blazing  houses. 

The  next  day,  however,  the  tumult  having  sub- 
sided as  usual,  when  the  Sultan  and  his  suite  were 
trotting  out  to  inspect  the  scene  of  the  conflagra- 
tion, and  had  got  as  far  as  the  fountain  in  front  of 


70  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

the  Seraglio,  the  figure  of  a  veiled  woman  cast  hei- 
self  in  front  of  the  horse's  hoofs,  and  with  auda- 
cious hands  laid  hold  of  the  bridle  of  the  steed  of 
the  Kalif. 

The  Sultan  backed  his  horse  to  prevent  it  from 
trampling  upon  the  woman,  and,  thinking  she  was 
one  of  those  who  had  been  burned  out  the  day  be- 
fore, ordered  his  treasurer — who  was  with  him — to 
put  a  silver  piece  in  her  hand  and  bid  her  depart 
in  the  name  of  the  Prophet. 

"Not  money,  my  lord  ;  but  blood  !  blood  !"  cried 
the  woman ;  and,  from  the  ring  of  her  voice, 
there  was  reason  to  suspect  that  she  was  a  young 
woman. 

The  Sultan  in  amazement  asked  the  woman  her 
name. 

"I  am  Eminah,  the  daughter  of  the  Pasha  of  Del- 
vino,  and  the  wife  of  AH  Tepelenti." 

"And  whose  blood  dost  thou  require  ?"  asked  the 
Sultan,  scandalized  to  see  the  favorite  wife  of  so 
powerful  a  man  prostrate  in  the  dust  before  his 
horse's  feet. 

"  I  demand  death  upon  his  head  !"  cried  the  wom- 
an, with  a  firm  voice — "on  the  head  of  AH  Tepe- 
lenti, from  whose  gehenna  of  a  fortress  I  have  es- 
caped on  the  waters  of  a  subterranean  stream  in 
order  that  I  might  accuse  him  to  thee  ;  and  if  thou 
dost  not  condemn  him,  I  will  go  to  the  judgment- 
seat  of  God  and  accuse  him  there  !" 

The  Sultan  was  horrified. 

It  is  a  terrible  thing  when  a  woman  accuses  her 
own  husband,  who  has  loaded  her  with  benefits.  He 
must,  indeed,  be  an  evil-doer  whom  turtle-doves,  the 
gentlest  of  all  God's  creatures,  attack  ! 


GASKHO    BEY  7  I 

The  Sultan  listened,  full  of  indignation,  to  the 
woman's  accusations. 

After  happily  escaping  from  the  fortress  of  Ali 
Pasha  with  the  Greek  girl,  she  learned,  during  her 
short  sojourn  among  the  Suliotes,  of  all  Ali's  cruel- 
ties, and  learned  also,  at  the  same  time,  that  in  Del- 
vino  had  just  died  a  rich  Armenian  lady,  who  had 
been  the  flame  of  Gaskho  Bey  in  his  younger  days, 
and  had  left  him  all  the  property  she  owned  in 
Albania.  Of  this  nobody  as  yet  knew  anything. 
What  more  natural  than  that  every  one  should 
immediately  fancy  he  had  found  the  key  to  the 
riddle  of  the  mysterious  attempt  at  assassination? 
Why,  of  course,  Ali  wanted  to  slay  Gaskho  Bey  in 
order  that  he  might  take  possession  of  his  Alba- 
nian property. 


CHAPTER  V 
A   MAN   IN   THE   MIDST   OP   DANGERS 

THE  Pasha  of  Janina,.  for  thirty  successive  days, 
received  nothing  but  ill  tidings  ;  and  twice  within 
the  period  of  two  waxing  moons  did  his  own  power 
as  steadily  wane. 

The  first  Job's-messenger  which  reached  him  was 
the  Arnaut  horseman,  who  had  escaped  from  Stam- 
bul,  and  whom  the  Sultan's  Tartars  had  pursued  as 
far  as  Adrianople.  This  man  told  him  that  the  at- 
tempt on  the  life  of  Gaskho  Bey  had  failed,  and  that 
the  captured  assassins  had  revealed  the  name  of 
their  employer. 

"  Behold,  I  have  wounded  myself  with  my  own 
sword,"  exclaimed  Ali.  "The  prophetic  voice  of 
Seleucia  spoke  the  truth  ;  yea,  verily,  it  spoke  the 
truth." 

And  still  more  of  the  prophecy  was  to  be  accom- 
plished. 

A  few  days  later  the  report  reached  him  that  Emi- 
nah  had  cast  herself  at  the  feet  of  the  Sultan  and 
demanded  judgment  on  the  head  of  her  husband. 

"  I  knew  it  beforehand,"  sighed  Ali.  "  The  Prophet 
told  it  all  to  me.  Nevertheless,  I  shall  stand  at  the 
gates  of  the  Seraglio  on  a  silver  pedestal." 

Next  day  he  heard  that  Gaskho  Bey  had  been 
appointed  Pasha  of  Janina. 


A   MAN   IN   THE   MIDST   OP   DANGERS  73 

"  They  act  as  if  I  were  dead  already,"  murmured 
the  veteran,  with  as  bitter  a  feeling  as  if  he  already 
saw  his  youthful  supplanter  standing  on  his  thresh- 
old. "  They  bury  me  before  I  am  dead,  they  divide 
my  property  before  I  have  made  my  will.  Never- 
theless, one  day  I  shall  stand  in  the  gates  of  the  Se- 
raglio on  a  richer  pedestal." 

And  with  that  Tepelenti  sent  forth  his  clauses  to 
all  the  towns  within  his  domains,  and  to  all  the 
local  governors,  commanding  all  who  had  sons  to 
send  their  sons  and  all  who  had  brothers  to  send 
their  brothers  to  him  without  delay.  Then  he  or- 
dered that  every  beast  of  burden  that  could  be 
spared  should  be  driven  into  the  mountains,  and 
that  every  barque  they  could  lay  their  hands  upon 
should  be  brought  from  the  sea-coast  into  the  Gulf 
of  Durazzo.  The  arsenal  of  Janina  bristled  with 
terrific  rows  of  cannons  and  bombs,  and  the  com- 
manders of  the  various  army  corps  received  in- 
structions to  concentrate  their  forces  under  the 
walls  of  Janina.  At  any  rate,  he  was  determined 
not  to  be  taken  unawares.  At  least,  he  would  have 
time  to  unfurl  the  red  flag  before  the  dread  mes- 
sage arrived  from  Stambul  that  the  Padishah  de- 
manded his  head. 

Ah,  ha  !  Ali  Tepelenti  would  not  surrender  his 
gray  beard  so  easily.  The  hunters  shall  find  out 
what  manner  of  lion  they  are  pursuing.  A  firman 
of  the  Grand  Signior  nominated  the  banished  Peh- 
livan  Pasha,  Lord  of  Lepanto  ;  Sulaiman  Pasha  was 
made  Governor  of  Trikala,  and  the  two  mountain 
passes  guarding  it ;  Muhammad  Bey,  whose  father 
Ali  had  slain,  was  proclaimed  Lieutenant-General 
of  Durazzo.  Thus  they  had  divided  his  territories 


74  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

beforehand  among  his  most  bitter  and  most  dan- 
gerous enemies.  Ah  !  this  will,  indeed,  be  a  magni- 
ficent chase. 

AH  called  together  his  sons,  of  whom  Vely  was 
Lord  of  Lepanto,  Sulaiman  of  Trikala,  and  Mukhtar 
Pasha  of  Durazzo.  He  showed  them  on  the  map 
where  their  territories  lay,  and  pointed  out  that 
if  they  lost  them  they  would  have  nothing  left. 
Let  all  three  of  them,  therefore,  gird  upon  their 
thighs  the  swords  he  intrusted  to  them  and  fight 
like  men.  The  two  younger  sons  swore  fervently 
that  they  would  conquer  Fortune  with  their  weap- 
ons, but  Vely  Bey  preserved  a  gloomy  silence. 

"Art  thou  not  my  son?"  asked  the  veteran. 

"  Allah  hath  so  willed  it,"  answered  Vely,  "  and 
I  also  will  fight,  not  for  thee  but  for  myself,  not 
for  life  nor  for  what  is  on  the  other  side  of  death, 
but  because  I  have  a  little  child  in  Lepanto,  and 
the  enemy  is  besieging  that  fortress.  That  little 
child  is  all  the  world  to  me.  I  will  fight  as  only  a 
father  can  fight  for  his  son.  I  will  rescue  him  if 
possible.  Thy  glory  or  thy  ruin  is  alike  indifferent 
to  me.  If  the  report  reach  thee  that  the  enemy 
hath  taken  Lepanto  and  slain  my  son,  then  count 
no  more  upon  the  sword  which  thou  hast  intrusted 
to  me." 

And  with  these  words  Vely  turned  his  back  on 
his  father  and  softly  withdrew. 

As  Ali  saw  his  son  quietly  pass  before  him,  it 
occurred  to  him  whether  it  would  not  be  as  well  to 
draw  his  pistol  from  his  belt  and  shoot  down  the 
waverer  before  he  quitted  Janina.  It  is  true  that 
he  had  known  all  this  beforehand.  His  own  wife, 
his  own  sons,  his  own  weapons,  were  to  turn  against 


A   MAN    IN   THE    MIDST   OF    DANGERS  75 

him  ;  but  then,  on  the  other  hand,  was  he  not 
to  stand  at  the  gate  of  the  Seraglio  on  a  silver 
pedestal  ? 

A  host  of  more  than  twenty  thousand  men  stood 
under  arms  at  his  disposal,  Albanians  and  Suliotes. 
A  gallant  host,  if  only  it  would  fight.  But  for 
whom  would  it  fight  ? — for  him  or  for  the  Sultan  ? 
And  these  soldiers,  when  they  saw  him  besieged, 
would  they  forget  their  murdered  kinsfolk,  their 
plundered  fields,  their  burned  villages?  Did  not 
every  man  of  them  know  that  Ali  Tepelenti  had 
been  amassing  treasures  all  his  life,  but  had  never 
troubled  himself  about  good  deeds  ?  And  now  these 
treasures  would  surely  be  his  ruin. 

Time  brought  the  answer.  While  his  enemies 
were  still  afar  off,  the  Suliotes  arose,  under  the 
leadership  of  a  girl  among  the  mountains  of  Bra- 
cori,  where  one  of  Ali's  grandsons,  Zaid,  was  re- 
cruiting soldiers,  and  massacred  Ali's  men  to  the 
very  last  one.  The  last  one,  however,  they  suffered 
to  escape  and  convey  to  Ali  Zaid's  severed  head, 
at  the  same  time  informing  him  that  it  was  sent 
by  that  girl  the  head  of  whose  betrothed  he  had 
cut  off  before  her  very  eyes,  and  she  meant  to  send 
him  still  more. 

This  was  the  Greek's  declaration  of  war.  There 
at  Janina,  under  his  very  nose,  the  Greek  captain, 
Zunga,  deserted  the  Albanian  camp,  and  when  the 
Grand  Signior's  army  reached  Trikala,  and  Gaskho 
Bey's  herald  galloped  between  the  two  armies  with 
the  imperial  firman  hanging  round  his  neck,  and 
summoned  the  vassals  to  take  up  arms  against  the 
Pasha,  the  whole  camp  went  over  to  Gaskho  Bey. 
Alone,  without  the  smallest  escort,  Sulaiman,  Ali 


76  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

Pasha's  youngest  son,  fled  without  having  had  the 
opportunity  of  testing  his  father's  sword,  and  they 
captured  him  on  the  road. 

Still  he  had  the  other  two.  Mukhtar  Bey,  with  a 
powerful  fleet,  lay  in  the  Gulf  of  Durazzo,  and  Vely 
Bey,  wroth  though  he  might  be  with  his  father,  was 
a  valiant  warrior,  and  his  son  was  in  Lepanto,  and 
save  him  he  must  and  would. 

But  not  only  his  son,  some  one  else  was  there 
also.  On  that  cruel,  murderous  day  when  Ali 
Pasha  drowned  the  harems  of  his  sons  in  the  lake, 
one  person  among  so  many  escaped,  and  this  was 
Xelianthe.  The  damsel  loved  Vely  as  much  as  he 
loved  her,  and  contrived  to  let  him  know  that  she 
was  alive.  Vely  Bey  sent  her  to  Lepanto,  and  kept 
her  in  hiding  there  with  his  little  son  in  order  that 
she  might  be  far  from  his  father. 

And  now  the  bey  himself  hastened  to  Lepanto, 
arrived  at  night  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  town, 
and  perceived  already  from  afar  that  the  citadel 
in  which  he  had  concealed  his  darlings  was  in 
flames. 

What  if  he  had  arrived  too  late  ! 

With  the  fury  of  a  savage  wild  tiger  he  flung 
himself  upon  the  besieging  Pehlivan,  and  in  a  mid- 
night battle  routed  him  beneath  the  walls  of  Le- 
panto, the  Albanians  fighting  desperately  by  the 
side  of  their  leader.  But  what  was  the  use  of  it? 
The  fortress  was  saved,  indeed,  but  it  was  already 
in  flames.  Vely,  roaring  with  grief  and  pain,  flung 
himself  on  the  gate,  scarcely  recognizing  again  the 
place  he  had  quitted  so  short  a  time  ago. 

He  reached  the  pavilion  where  he  had  concealed 
his  wife  and  child.  It  was  built  entirely  of  wood, 


A   MAN    IN   THE    MIDST    OF    DANGERS  77 

except  the  roof,  which  was  of  copper.  A  curious 
mass  of  molten  dark-red  metal  gleamed  among  the 
fire-brands.  Vely  rushed  bellowing  to  the  spot, 
and  his  soldiers,  tearing  aside  the  charred  beams 
and  rafters,  came  upon  two  skeletons  burned  to  cin- 
ders. A  coral  necklace  lying  there,  which  the  fire 
had  been  unable  to  calcine,  told  him  that  these  were 
the  remains  of  his  wife  and  son. 

Not  a  word  did  Vely  say  to  a  living  soul ;  but  he 
plunged  his  sword  into  its  sheath,  and  that  same 
night  he  rode  unarmed  into  the  camp  of  the  dis- 
comfited Pehlivan  Pasha  and  surrendered  himself 
to  the  enemy. 

His  army,  utterly  demoralized,  immediately  fled 
back  to  Janina,  bringing  the  tidings  to  his  father 
that  Vely  Bey,  immediately  after  his  victory,  had 
surrendered  of  his  own  accord  to  the  Sultan. 

So  every  one  abandoned  AH.  His  cities  opened 
their  gates  to  his  enemies,  his  best  friends  betrayed, 
his  two  sons  forsook,  him.  Still  the  third  son  re- 
mained. And  Mukhtar  Bay  was  the  best  man  of 
the  three.  He  was  the  bravest,  and  he  loved  his 
father  the  best. 

Two  days  later  came  the  tidings  that  Mukhtar 
Bey  with  his  whole  fleet  had  surrendered  before 
Durazzo  to  the  Kapudan  Pasha. 

"  The  soothsayer  foretold  it  all  to  me,"  said  AH, 
calmly,  when  the  news  was  brought  to  him.  "  So 
it  was  written  beforehand  in  heaven.  Neverthe- 
less, at  the  last,  I  shall  stand  at  the  gates  of  the 
Seraglio  on  a  silver  pedestal !" 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  LION   IN   THE   FOX'S   SKIN 

BLOW  upon  blow  rain  down  upon  thee,  thou 
veteran  warrior  !  Thine  armies  go  over  to  the 
enemy,  thy  friends  leave  thee  desolate,  thy  sons 
betray  thee,  they  capture  thy  cities  without  un- 
sheathing their  swords,  thine  allies  turn  their  arms 
against  thee,  and  with  thine  own  artillery,  of  the 
best  French  manufacture,  the  Suliotes  from  the 
walls  of  Janina  shoot  down  thine  Albanian  guards  ! 

Ah,  those  Suliotes  !  How  they  can  fight !  If 
only  now  they  would  raise  their  swords  on  thy  be- 
half, how  thine  enemies  would  fall  in  rows  !  But 
now  it  is  thy  soldiers  that  fall  before  tJicm !  A 
brother  and  a  sister  lead  them  on — a  youth  and  a 
girl ;  the  youth's  name  is  Kleon,  the  girl's  name  is 
Artemis.  Every  time  thou  dost  hear  their  names, 
it  is  as  if  a  sword  were  being  plunged  into  thy 
heart,  for  the  girl  is  she  whom  thou  wouldst  have 
sacrificed  to  thy  lust,  and  with  whom  thy  wife 
didst  escape ;  and  thou  never  dost  hear  that  name 
without  hearing  at  the  same  time  of  the  loss  of  thy 
bravest  warriors ! 

Like  the  destroying  angel  Azrael,  she  fares 
through  the  din  of  battle,  waving  her  white  banner 
amidst  the  showers  of  bullets,  and  not  one  of  them 
touches  her.  Before  thy  very  eyes  she  plants  the 


THE    LION    IN   THE    FOX  S    SKIN  79 

triumphant  banner  on  thy  bastions,  and  thou  hast 
not  strength  of  mind  enough  left  to  wish  her  to 
fall ;  nay,  rather,  when  thou  dost  see  her  appear 
before  thee,  thou  dost  forbid  thy  gunners  to  fire 
upon  her  ! 

Danger  approaches  Janina  from  all  sides.  Thou 
must  drain  the  cup,  Tepelenti,  to  the  very  last  drop, 
to  the  last  bitter  drop  ;  and  what  then  ?  Why,  then 
thou  wilt  stand  before  the  Seraglio  on  a  silver 
pedestal ! 

One  night  there  was  a  rolling  of  drums  before 
the  seven  gates  of  Janina,  and  a  bomb  flying  down 
from  the  heights  of  Lithanizza  exploded  in  the 
market-place/  of  the  town.  Up,  up,  ye  Albanians  ! 
up,  up,  ye  who  have  any  martial  blood  in  your 
veins,  the  enemy  has  seized  the  guns  on  the  seven 
gates  !  Ali  throws  himself  on  his  prancing  steed, 
and  in  his  hand  is  the  good  battle-sword  which  has 
befriended  him  in  so  many  a  danger.  How  many 
times  has  it  not  been  the  lot  of  Ali  to  lose  every- 
thing but  this  one  sword,  and  then  to  win  back 
everything  by  means  of  it  ? 

In  a  moment  the  army  of  the  besieged  stood  in 
battle-array.  Ali  contemplated  the  ranks  of  the 
enemy,  and  a  smile  passed  across  his  face.  That 
worthy  captain,  Gaskho  Bey,  was  leading  his  troops 
to  the  shambles.  In  an  hour's  time  Ali  will  so  com- 
pletely have  annihilated  them  that  not  even  the 
rumor  of  them  will  remain  behind.  It  will  be  a 
battle-field  worthy  of  the  veteran  general.  Every 
one  who  sees  it  will  say — there  is  no  escaping  from 
him  !  Only  let  them  advance,  that  is  all !  And 
again  he  was  disappointed.  At  the  first  shot,  be- 


8o  THE    LION    OF  JANINA 

fore  a  sv/ord  had  been  drawn,  his  army  surrendered 
to  the  enemy.  If  only  they  had  fired  once,  the  vic- 
tory would  have  been  his  ;  but  no,  the  army  laid 
down  its  arms  and  the  cunningly  concealed  gunners 
turned  his  own  artillery  against  him. 

It  was  all  over !  Only  seven  hundred  Albanian 
horsemen  remained  with  Ali,  the  rest  either  went 
over  to  the'  enemy  or  allowed  themselves  to  be 
taken. 

The  old  lion  waved  his  sword  above  his  head,  and 
turning  to  his  handful  of  heroes  exclaimed,  with  a 
voice  that  rang  out  like  a  brazen  trumpet,  "  Will  ye 
behold  Ali  die?" 

And  with  that  he  galloped  towards  the  market- 
place of  Janina,  the  faithful  seven  hundred  follow- 
ing closely  upon  his  heels. 

The  enemy  poured  into  the  town  through  every 
gate,  but  the  market-place  cut  off  one  part  of  the 
town  from  the  others,  and  the  triumphant  hordes 
came  upon  some  very  evil-looking  trenches  bristling 
with  chevaux  de  frise,  and  the  long  narrow  streets 
were  swept  by  Ali's  last  twelve  cannons,  ably  han- 
dled by  the  pasha's  dumb  eunuchs,  who  stood  at 
their  posts  like  the  symbols  of  constancy  on  a  tomb. 

Ali  Pasha  put  down  his  foot  in  the  middle  of 
Janina.  Of  his  ten  thousand  horsemen  only  seven 
hundred  remained  with  him.  The  enemy  had 
twenty  thousand  men  and  two  hundred  guns,  and 
yet  all  the  skill  of  Gaskho  Bey  was  incapable  of  dis- 
lodging Ali  from  the  market-place  of  Janina,  and 
although  the  enemy  held  one  portion  of  the  city,  it 
was  unable  to  take  the  other  portion.  If  only  they 
could  have  come  to  close  quarters  with  him,  they 
would  have  crushed  him  with  one  hand  ;  but  get 


THE    LION    IN    THE    FOX'S    SKIN  8l 

at  him  they  could  not  —  that  required  skill,  not 
strength. 

At  last  the  besiegers  set  the  town  on  fire  all 
around  him,  but  still  Ali  did  not  budge  from  his 
place,  and  the  wind  blew  the  flames  in  the  face  of 
Gaskho  Bey,  who  began  to  look  about  him  uncom- 
fortably when  the  two  Suliote  kinsfolk,  Kleon  and 
Artemis,  at  the  head  of  their  squadrons,  urged  him 
to  boldly  assault  the  market-place. 

Tepelenti  saw  the  girl  with  her  white  banner,  and 
as  her  troops  filled  the  broad  space  at  the  head  of 
the  square,  he  himself,  at  first,  drew  near  to  her. 
Four  cannons  were  pointed  at  the  Suliotes,  loaded 
with  chain-shot  and  broken  glass.  Ali  looked  tow- 
ards them  with  a  gloomy  countenance,  then  stuck 
his  sword  in  its  sheath,  bade  his  gunners  turn  the 
guns  round,  harness  the  horses  to  them,  and  take 
refuge  -in  the  citadel.  He  would  not  let  a  single 
shot  be  fired  at  the  Suliotes. 

The  moment  Ali  turned  his  back,  the  besieging 
host  captured  the  field  of  battle.  They  followed 
hard  upon  the  heels  of  the  retreating  band  all  the 
way,  and  when  Ali  reached  the  bridge,  the  Spahis 
and  Timariots,  like  two  swarms  of  bees  mingled 
together,  gained  the  head  of  the  bridge  at  the 
same  time,  and  swarmed  after  him  with  a  shout  of 
triumph.  The  real  struggle  began  on  the  bridge 
itself.  Man  to  man  they  fought  at  close  quarters 
with  their  shorter  weapons  (they  could  use  no  oth- 
er), and  clubs  and  dirks  did  bloody  work  in  the 
throng  which  poured  from  two  different  quarters, 
along  and  over  the  overcrowded  bridge  like  ants 
coming  out  of  a  slender  reed.  Six  hundred  of  the 
Albanians  succeeded  in  escaping  into  the  citadel, 
6 


82  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

and  then,  at  Ali's  command,  the  iron  gates  were 
clapped  to,  leaving  the  remaining  hundred  to  per- 
ish on  the  bridge,  where  the  overwhelming  crowd 
swallowed  them  up.  Each  single  Albanian  fought 
against  ten  to  twenty  Timariots.  The  bridge  rang 
with  the  din  of  combat,  and  trembled  beneath  the 
weight  of  the  heavy  crowd.  Then  suddenly  the 
guns  on  both  sides  of  the  bastions  which  were  at- 
tached to  the  bridge  began  to  roar,  the  supports 
of  the  captured  bridge  collapsed,  and  the  bridge  it- 
self, with  its  load  of  fighting  Turks  and  Albanians, 
plunged  down  into  the  deep  trenches  below. 

Down  there  were  sharp -pointed  stakes  beneath 
the  deep  waters,  and  those  of  the  besiegers  who  re- 
mained on  the  bank  were  horrified  to  perceive  that 
not  one  of  the  fallen  crowd  reappeared  on  the  sur- 
face of  the  water,  while  the  water  itself  gradually 
grew  redder  and  redder,  till  at  last  it  was  a  bright 
crimson,  painted  by  the  blood  of  the  corpses  below. 

And  opposite  to  them  stood  the  fast-barred  gate. 

Ah — ha !  'Tis  not  so  easy  to  capture  Tepelenti 
as  ye  thought. 

Everywhere  else  ye  have  triumphed  ;  ye  have 
triumphed  up  to  the  very  last  point.  And  now  ye 
have  come  to  the  last  point,  and  your  victories  are 
worth  nothing,  for  the  last  point  is  still  to  be  won. 

The  fortress  is  unapproachable.  The  bastions 
are  built  in  the  middle  of  the  lake,  and  from  their 
dark  quadrangular  cavities  rows  of  guns  (each  one 
of  them  a  sixty-pounder)  sweep  the  surface  of  the 
water,  $o  that  it  is  impossible  to  draw  near  in  boats. 
On  the  land  side  one  hundred  cannons  defend  the 
bastions,  and  who  can  surmount  the  triple  ditch  ? 

Ye  will  never  capture  Ali  there.     He  has  suffi- 


THE    LION   IN   THE    FOX'S    SKIN  83 

cient  muniments  of  war  to  last  him  for  an  indefinite 
period,  and  to  show  them  how  determined  he  was, 
he  caused  the  solitary  gate  of  the  fortress  to  be 
filled  with  masonry  and  walled  up.  So  the  fortress 
has  no  longer  a  gate.  Even  desertion  is  now  an 
impossibility. 

There  he  will  remain,  then,  walled  up  as  in  a 
tomb,  buried  alive  !  The  only  roads  from  thence 
lead  to  heaven  or  hell ;  the  exit  from  the  land  side 
is  guarded  by  the  Suliotes  ;  even  if  he  could  fly  he 
could  not  escape  from  them. 

The  campaign  is  ended.  The  victorious  Gaskho 
Bey  proclaims  himself  Pasha  of  Janina.  The  whole 
of  Epirus  does  homage  to  him,  and  deserts  the  fall- 
en Vizier.  In  Stambul  thanksgivings  are  offered 
up  in  the  Ejub  mosque  and  the  church  of  St.  Sophia 
for  the  accomplished  victory,  which  is  proclaimed, 
amidst  the  roaring  of  the  cannons,  by  heralds  in  the 
great  market-place  ;  and  all  the  newspapers  of  Eu- 
rope amazedly  report  that  the  mighty  and  terrible 
adventurer,  the  ever-victorious  veteran  of  seventy- 
nine,  the  party-leader  who  grew  to  such  a  height 
that  it  was  doubtful  whether  he  or  the  Sultan  were 
the  real  ruler  of  Turkey,  the  man  who  had  been  the 
ally  of  the  great  Napoleon,  who  a  few  months  be- 
fore had  sent  as  a  present  to  England  a  precious 
dinner-service  of  pure  gold  worth  30,000  thaler, 
who  had  heaped  up  more  treasures  than  any  East- 
ern nabob— ^is  suddenly  crushed,  annihilated,  shut 
up  in  a  fortress  !  It  now  only  remains  for  him  to 
die. 

And  not  very  long  afterwards  he  did  die.  One 
night  a  couple  of  bold  Albanian  horsemen  descend- 
ed the  bastions  by  means  of  a  long  rope,  and,  cross- 


84  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

ing  the  lake  of  Acheruz  on  a  pine  log,  sought  out 
Gaskho  Bey  in  his  camp  that  very  night. 

AH  Tepelenti  was  dead.  They  were  the  first  to 
bear  the  joyful  tidings  to  the  bey.  He  died  in  his 
grief,  in  his  wretchedness.  Perhaps  also  he  had 
taken  poison.  On  the  morrow,  at  three  o'clock, 
.they  had  arranged  to  bury  him  in  the  fortress. 
Before  his  death  he  had  called  together  his  lieuten- 
ants, and  taken  an  oath  of  them  that  they  would 
defend  the  fortress  to  the  very  last  gasp  of  the  very 
last  man.  His  treasures  were  piled  up  in  the  red 
tower — more  than  thirty  millions  of  piastres.  He 
had  left  it  all  to  them.  But  what  was  the  use  of 
all  this  treasure  to  them  if  they  could  not  get  out 
of  this  eyrie?  They  would  not  surrender  them- 
selves, for  Ali  had  made  them  swear  by  every  Turk- 
ish saint  that  they  would  defend  the  fortress  to  the 
death.  But  the  rank  and  file  were  of  a  different 
opinion  ;  they  would  joyfully  retire  from  the  for- 
tress if  they  were  assured  of  a  free  forgiveness. 
Gaskho  Bey  had  only  to  stretch  out  his  hand  and 
the  fortress  of  Janina,  the  impregnable  fortress  with 
its  two  hundred  cannons  and  its  enormous  mass  of 
treasure,  would  be  his. 

Early  in  the  morning  the  gray  moonless  flag,  the 
sign  of  death,  was  waving  on  the  red  tower  of  Ja- 
nina, and  the  guns  overlooking  the  water  fired 
three  and  thirty  volleys,  whose  echo  proclaimed 
among  the  mountains  that  Ali  TepeleAti  was  dead. 
Within  the  fortress  sounded  the  roll  of  the  muffled 
drums,  and  it  was  also  possible  to  distinguish  the 
dirges  of  the  imams. 

Gaskho  Bey  and  his  staff,  from  the  top  of  the 
Lithanizza  hills,  watched  the  burial  of  the  pasha. 


THE    LION    IN   THE    FOX'S    SKIN  85 

There  was  an  observatory  here  from  whose  balcony 
they  could  look  down  into  the  court-yard,  and  the 
splendid  telescopes,  which  the  sultan  had  got  from 
Vienna,  rendered  powerful  assistance  to  the  on- 
lookers, who  through  them  could  observe  the  small- 
est details  of  what  was  going  on  in  the  court-yard 
of  the  fortress  ;  one  telescope  in  particular  brought 
the  objects  so  near  that  one  could  read  the  initial 
letters  of  the  verses  of  the  Kuran  which  the  imams 
held  in  their  hands. 

In  the  midst  of  a  simple  coffin  lay  Ali  Pasha.  It 
was  really  he  ;  of  that  there  could  be  no  doubt. 
Let  every  one  look  for  himself !  There  he  lay — 
dead,  cold,  motionless.  His  lieutenants  and  his  ser- 
vants stood  around  him  weeping.  Those  who  walk- 
ed along  by  his  side  stooped  down  to  kiss  his  hands. 

In  the  town  outside  the  Suliotes  knew  of  Ali's 
death,  and  by  way  of  compliment  they  fired  a  bomb 
into  the  citadel.  But  the  match  of  the  bomb  was 
too  short,  and  it  exploded  in  the  air. 

From  the  observatory  they  could  see  very  well 
the  fright  of  the  crowd  assembled  in  the  court-yard 
at  the  whizzing  of  the  bomb  over  their  heads,  and 
how  every  one  looked  anxiously  at  the  little  round 
white  cloud  there  ;  only  he  who  lay  dead  in  the 
midst  of  them  remained  cold  and  tranquil.  He 
will  never  again  be  disturbed  by  the  roar  of  an  ex- 
ploding bomb. 

The  imams  raised  him  on  their  shoulders,  and, 
amidst  the  melancholy  dirges  of  the  mourners  and 
the  muffled  roll  of  the  drums,  they  carried  him  away 
to  his  open  tomb,  for  his  grave  was  already  dug. 

The  Moslems  do  not  put  their  dead  in  a  closed 
coffin  ;  they  only  half  board  the  tomb  up  in  order 


86  THE    LION    OF  JANINA 

that  the  angels  of  death  may  have  room  to  place 
the  corpse  in  a  sitting  posture  when  they  come  to 
take  an  account  of  his  actions. 

They  reajly  did  lower  Ali  Tepelenti  into  his  tomb. 

The  garrison  fired  a  triple  salute,  the  imams  thrice 
sang  their  sacred  verses,  and  then  came  the  grave- 
diggers  and  cast  the  earth  upon  the  corpse.  A 
large  marble  slab  was  standing  there,  and  with  it 
they  pressed  down  the  earth  on  the  tomb,  at  the 
same  time  placing  two  turbaned  headstones,  one  at 
each  end  of  the  tomb. 

They  really  did  bury  Ali. 

When  the  imams  and  the  officers  had  departed 
from  the  covered  tomb,  Gaskho  Bey  summoned  the 
keepers  of  the  observatory  to  the  summit  of  Litha- 
nizza  and  laid  this  command  upon  them  : 

"  Let  a  man  stand  in  front  of  this  telescope  from 
morning  to  evening  (and  mind  that  he  is  relieved 
every  four  hours),  and  never  withdraw  his  eye  from 
that  tomb.  At  night,  when  the  moon  goes  down, 
a  rocket  is  to  be  fired  every  five  minutes,  that  the 
watchers  may  see  the  tomb  and  never  leave  it  out 
of  sight,  and  report  upon  it  every  hour." 

What?  Is  Gaskho  Bey  actually  afraid  that  old 
Ali,  a  veteran  of  seventy-nine,  will  be  able  to  arise 
from  his  tomb  and  hurl  away  that  heavy  marble 
slab  with  his  dead  hands  ?  There  are  men  of  whom 
it  is  impossible  to  believe  that  they  are  dead,  and 
whom  people  are  afraid  of  even  when  they  are 
buried. 

Every  hour  till  late  in  the  evening  they  reported 
to  Gaskho  Bey  that  the  tomb  remained  unchanged, 
and  all  the  night  through  not  a  soul  approached  it. 

Tepelenti,  then,  was  really  dead — totally  dead. 


THE    LION   IN   THE    FOX'S    SKIN  87 

Early  next  morning  Gaskho  Bey  heard  a  very 
curious  story. 

In  the  artillery  barracks,  where  the  round  guns 
stood,  a  drummer  had  laid  down  his  drum  close 
beside  him,  with  the  drumsticks  leaning  over  it, 
when  he  suddenly  perceived  the  two  drumsticks 
begin  to  move  of  their  own  accord  over  the  tightly 
drawn  skin  of  the  drums  as  if  some  invisible  hand 
wished  to  beat  a  tattoo.  The  drummer  cried  out 
at  this  marvel,  and  fancied  that  a  dsJiin  was  in  the 
drum. 

Gaskho  Bey  would  not  believe  it  till  he  had  him- 
self gone  to  the  barracks  and  seen  with  his  own  eyes 
how  the  two  drumsticks  vibrated  with  sufficient 
force  to  tap  the  drum  pretty  loudly,  moving  in  a 
spiral  line  backward  and  forward  across  it,  tap- 
tap-tapping  as  they  went. 

"  It  is  very  marvellous  !"  cried  the  bey  ;  and  he 
immediately  summoned  the  imams  to  drive  the 
dzhin  out  of  the  drum. 

The  imams  set  to  work  at  once.  They  fetched 
their  fumigators  and  their  sacred  books,  and  they 
fumigated  the  drum  with  nose-offending  odors  and 
recited  over  it  drum-expelling  exorcisms  in  a  shrill 
voice.  And  certainly  if  the  devil  was  in  that  drum, 
and  had  anything  of  a  nose  or  ears,  he  would  have 
been  obliged  to  escape  from  that  noise  and  stink. 
So  long  as  the  drum  was  in  any  one's  hand  the 
drumsticks  did  not  move,  but  when  it  was  put 
down  on  the  ground  the  mysterious  tap  -  tapping 
began  again. 

The  imams  went  on  howling,  and  horribly  they 
howled. 

The  chief  of  the  observatory  was  present  during 


88  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

this  scene.  As  a  French  renegade  he  was  a  man  of 
some  education,  and  therefore  he  did  not  accept  the 
theory  of  the  dzhins.  When  he  perceived  that  the 
imams  were  not  successful  in  expelling  the  evil 
spirits,  he  called  Gaskho  Bey  aside  and  whispered 
in  his  ear  : 

"  I  know  nothing  about  your  dzhins,  and  don't 
understand  what  you  are  driving  at  with  all  this 
noise  and  stench,  but  I  can  tell  you  that  this  beat- 
ing of  the  drum  is  a  sign  that  invisible  hands  are  at 
work  here." 

"What?" 

"  It  means  that  we  ought  to  get  away  from  here,  for 
they  are  digging  mines  beneath  us,  and  that  is  why 
the  ground  trembles  and  the  drumsticks  vibrate." 

Gaskho  Bey  began  smiling.  He  had  as  little  idea 
of  sapping  and  mining  as  the  French  renegade  had 
of  Turkish  monsters. 

"  How  superstitious  thou  art,  my  brave  moosir  !" 
said  he,  shrugging  his  shoulders  and  looking  down 
upon  the  Frenchman. 

The  latter,  however,  did  not  remain  there  much 
longer,  but  hastened  as  quickly  as  he  could  to  the 
summit  of  the  Lithanizza. 

After  about  an  hour  and  a  half's  more  hubbub  the 
imams  succeeded  in  expelling  the  dzliin.  The  drum 
grew  quiet,  the  excitement  subsided,  and  the  soldiers 
were  instructed  to  lay  two  swords  crosswise  in  front 
of  the  gate,  so  that  the  spirit  might  not  be  able  to 
come  back  any  more  ;  and  with  that  termination  of 
the  affair  every  one  was  satisfied. 

Opposite  the  gate  of  the  fortress  of  Janina,  at  the 
head  of  the  collapsed  bridge,  stood  a  stone  building, 


THE    LION    IN   THE    FOX  S    SKIN  89 

fenced  about  with  redoubts  and  palisades,  which 
had  now  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  Suliotes. 
This  building  had  been  chosen  by  the  two  Greek 
kinsfolk  for  their  dwelling-place.  They  wanted  to 
get  as  close  to  Ali  as  possible  ;  they  would  not  suffer 
him  to  escape  even  in  the  shape  of  a  bird  or  a  spirit ; 
their  large  siege-guns  were  pointed  at  the  walled-up 
gate.  Let  him  surrender  or  find  his  tomb  in  the 
fortress. 

And  lo  !  he  Jiad  found  his  tomb  without  consult- 
ing them  about  it.  In  vain  they  had  sharpened 
their  weapons  against  him — the  sword  of  Death  is 
quicker  and  cuts  down  sooner.  They  had  not  been 
able  to  reach  him  on  the  field  of  battle  ;  they  had 
not  been  able  to  plunge  their  avenging  swords  into 
his  heart ;  they  had  not  been  able  to  bring  his 
gray  head  to  the  block  ;  it  had  been  reserved  for 
him  to  pass  quietly  away — to  die  in  his  bed,  un- 
troubled, unmolested,  to  die  the  death  of  the  right- 
eous. 

Kleon  and  Artemis  were  sitting  sullenly  in  a  room 
of  the  fort  by  the  light  of  a  flickering  candle.  The 
girl  had  absently  divested  herself  of  her  cuirass  and 
was  walking  up  and  down  the  room  with  folded 
arms.  There  was  not  a  single  womanly  trait  in  her 
face.  It  was  as  cold  as  the  face  of  a  statue. 

"  So  he  is  dead,  then — dead  !" 

This  phrase  she  repeated  to  herself  again  and 
again.  She  seemed  unable  to  get  away  from  it. 

"Ali  has  died,  and  not  by  my  hand." 

Kleon  was  strikingly  like  his  sister  ;  indeed,  his 
young  face  scarcely  differed  at  all  from  hers,  but 
in  his  eyes  quite  another  sort  of  flame  sparkled. 
Her  face,  full  of  dark  thoughts,  was  much  more  ter- 


90  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

rible  ;  his  was  free  and  open,  and  full  of  radiant 
hope. 

"  My  triumph  has  lost  its  worth  if  AH  is  dead," 
she  said,  with  a  sigh.  "  The  old  fox  has  dodged 
my  steel  by  taking  refuge  in  hell.  Oh,  would  that 
I  might  follow  him  thither  also,  that  I  might  tear 
his  gray  beard,  which  he  has  bathed  in  my  kins- 
man's blood !" 

"  Behold !  here  is  my  gray  beard  !"  cried  a  voice 
at  that  instant  from  the  other  end  of  the  room,  and 
the  brother  and  sister  beheld  AH  Tepelenti  stand- 
ing before  them. 

The  terror-stricken  young  people  involuntarily 
crossed  themselves.  Horror  nailed  them  to  the 
ground  and  petrified  all  their  limbs,  when  they 
saw  what  they  imagined  to  be  a  spectre  standing 
there  before  them  in  the  self-same  gray  robe  in 
which  he  had  been  buried  two  days  before. 

"  Behold,  here  I  am,  AH  Tepelenti  !" 

With  that  the  spectre  clapped  his  hands,  and 
from  every  corner  of  the  room  rushed  forth  Alba- 
nians armed  to  the  teeth,  and  before  the  brother 
and  sister  could  approach  their  weapons,  they  were 
overpowered  and  tied  together. 

It  was  really  AH  Tepelenti  who  stood  before 
them. 

They  had  put  him  away  underground,  it  is  true, 
but  underground  there  were  paths  and  passages 
only  too  well  known  to  him.  The  whole  spectacle 
of  the  interment  had  been  arranged  by  himself, 
and  there  was  an  exit  from  the  bottom  of  his 
tomb  into  subterranean  corridors.  When  the  gen- 
eral joy  and  satisfaction  at  the  victory  was  at  its 
height,  he  was  abroad  and  at  work. 


THE    LION    IN    THE    FOX  S    SKIN  91 

A  strongly  built  subterranean  trench  had  been 
constructed  below  the  ditches  encircling  the  re- 
doubts, and  its  ramifications  extended  to  the  fort 
at  the  head  of  the  bridge.  AH  had  so  completely 
surprised  the  garrison  that  they  had  not  been  able 
to  fire  a  shot ;  the  Suliotes  had  been  surprised  and 
disarmed  while  in  their  dreams. 

Up,  up,  Gaskho  Bey  !  Arise,  Muhammad  Aga  ! 
To  horse,  ye  captains  !  Seize  thy  sword,  Pehlivan 
Pasha  !  Danger  is  at  hand  !  This  is  a  bad  night 
for  sleeping ! 

Suddenly  a  frightful  explosion  shook  the  ground, 
just  as  if  the  earth  was  being  wrenched  from  its 
hinges,  and  amidst  a  flame  brighter  than  the  light  of 
day,  which  seemed  to  leap  up  to  the  very  stars,  huge 
round  cannons  were  seen  flying.  The  gunners  in 
the  barracks  were  also  pitched  into  the  air.  The 
minarets  tottered  and  fell  before  the  terrific  shock, 
every  building  round  about  crumbled  into  ruins. 
In  a  moment  one-half  of  the  town  was  reduced  to 
a  rubbish  -  heap,  and  the  next  moment  a  hail  of 
burning  beams  and  lacerated  human  limbs  fell  back 
upon  the  ruins  from  the  blood  and  fire  besmudged 
heavens. 

It  was  thus  that  Ali  Pasha  signified  his  resurrec- 
tion to  his  enemies  !  He  had  gone  underground,  and 
now  from  underground  he  began  the  war  anew. 

Gaskho  Bey,  his  gigantic  body  half  undressed 
(he  had  just  leaped  out  of  bed),  rushed  to  the  end 
of  the  street,  and  was  so  confused  that  he  asked  all 
whom  he  met  where  he  was.  The  suddenly  aroused 
soldiers,  half  mad  with  terror,  rushed  hither  and 
thither  in  confusion,  crying  out,  one  for  his  horse, 


92  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

another  for  his  weapons.  And  above  their  heads, 
more  terrible  than  heaven's  thunder-bolts,  resound- 
ed the  dread  cry,  "  Ali,  Ali !"  There  comes  the  en- 
tombed pasha  on  a  white  horse,  with  his  white 
beard  ;  who  will  dare  to  look  him  in  the  face  ?  The 
panic-stricken  throng  falls  in  thousands  beneath 
the  swords  of  the  Albanians,  blood  flows  in  streams 
in  the  streets  of  Janina,  and  Ali  Pasha,  the  dead 
man,  the  buried  captain,  fills  the  hearts  of  their 
warriors  with  the  fear  of  death.  There  is  none 
who  can  stand  against  him. 

Only  Pehlivan,  the  stalwart  hero,  was  able  to 
prevent  the  vast  besieging  army  from  being  scat- 
tered altogether  by  a  handful  of  Arnauts.  He  ral- 
lied the  fugitives  outside  the  town,  and,  while  Ali's 
men-at-arms  were  murdering  every  one  inside,  he 
quickly  seized  all  the  gates,  advanced  in  battle-ar- 
ray, and  stayed  the  triumph  of  the  veteran  captain. 

And  enough  had  surely  been  done. 

Three  thousand  of  the  besiegers  lay  dead,  the. 
guns  were  spiked  or  overthrown,  and  the  leaders 
of  the  Suliote  band  were  prisoners  —  and  all  this 
the  result  of  Ali's  nocturnal  rally  !  It  was  time  for 
him  to  return. 

Pehlivan  thus  recaptured  the  town  and  mar- 
shalled his  men  in  the  market-place,  without  pur- 
suing Ali  any  further.  But  he  had  reckoned  with- 
out Gaskho  Bey,  who  now  came  rushing  up  and 
furiously  accosted  him  : 

"  Why  hast  thou  not  pursued  him  right  into  the 
citadel  ?" 

"  It  would  not  do  to  press  Ali  too  closely,"  replied 
the  practised  general ;  "  let  him  fly,  if  fly  he  will." 

At  this,  Gaskho  Bey,  foaming  with  rage,  tore  the 


THE    LION    IN    THE    FOX'S    SKIN  93 

sword  out  of  Pehlivan's  hand  (where  he  had  left 
his  own  sword  he  could  not  have  said  for  the  life 
of  him),  and,  placing  himself  at  the  head  of  a  band 
of  Spahis,  began  to  pursue  the  retreating  foe. 

Ali  was  proceeding  quite  leisurely  towards  the 
fortress,  as  if  he  did  not  trouble  himself  about  his 
pursuers,  although  they  were  six  times  as  numerous 
as  his  forces. 

When  Gaskho  Bey  had  got  within  ear-shot,  Tepe- 
lenti  shouted  back  to  him : 

"  Thou  hast  come  to  a  bad  place,  brave  Bey. 
This  ground  is  mine,  and  what  is  beneath  it  is  mine 
also,  dost  thou  not  know  that  yet  ?" 

Gaskho  Bey  naturally  did  not  understand  a  word 
of  this  till,  at  a  gesture  from  Ali,  a  rocket  flew  up 
into  the  air,  at  which  signal  those  inside  the  for- 
tress suddenly  exploded  all  the  mines  which  had 
been  dug  under  all  the  streets  of  the  town.  Tepe- 
lenti  had  prepared  these  during  his  fortunate  days 
by  piercing  water  conduits  and  making  subterra- 
nean vaults  large  enough  to  hold  great  stores  of 
gunpowder, 

Ali  rallied  his  own  bands  at  the  head  of  the 
bridge,  and  when,  suddenly,  the  explosion  burst 
forth  along  the  whole  length  of  the  street,  and  the 
destroying  flame  tossed  the  pursuing  squadrons  into 
the  air  one  after  the  other,  he  amused  himself  by 
contemplating  the  ruin  from  the  top  of  the  fort, 
and  was  the  last  who  disappeared  in  the  hidden 
tunnel.  For  a  long  time  those  in  the  fortress  could 
hear  the  agonized  cries  of  the  vanquished.  One- 
third  of  the  besieging  army  had  been  destroyed  in 
a  single  night.  The  rest  quitted  the  accursed  town, 
which  seemed  to  have  been  built  over  hell  itself, 


94  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

and  took  up  a  position  in  the  fields  outside  and  on 
the  heights  of  Lithanizza. 

The  rising  sun  revealed  a  horrible  spectacle.  The 
town  of  Janina  no  longer  existed,  the  beautiful  tall 
houses,  the  cupolaed  mosques,  the  slender  white 
minarets,  the  imposing  barracks — where  were  they? 
Instead  of  them,  all  that  could  be  seen  was  a  shape- 
less mass  of  piled-up  ruins  ;  here  and  there,  on  a 
dark  background,  scorched  by  flickering  flames,  a 
huddle-muddle  of  broken  rafters,  mangled  corpses, 
charred  black  or  gaping  hideously  open,  lay  scat- 
tered about  amongst  the  rubbish,  and  from  the 
mouth  of  a  conduit  at  the  side  of  the  bastion  there 
trickled  sadly  down  into  the  lake  a  dark  red  stream, 
which  wound  its  way  in  and  out  amongst  the  ruins. 

"  Poor  children,  how  sweetly  they  are  sleeping  !" 

Thus  spoke  Ali. 

In  a  corner  of  the  red  tower,  sleeping  side  by 
side,  were  the  two  Suliote  kinsfolk,  Artemis  and 
Kleon.  They  slept  in  each  other's  embrace,  and 
not  even  the  gaze  of  Ali  awoke  them. 

"  Don't  arouse  them,"  said  Ali  to  his  dumb  eu- 
nuchs ;  "let  them  sleep  on  !" 

And  again  he  regarded  them  with  a  smile — they 
slept  so  soundly.  And  yet  they  knew  not  when 
they  fell  asleep  whether  they  would'  ever  awake 
again. 

Ali  did  not  arouse  the  slumberers.  Thrice  he  sent 
to  see  if  they  had  awakened,  but  he  would  not  have 
them  disturbed.  At  last  the  hand  of  the  youth 
made  his  chain  clank,  and  both  of  them  opened 
their  eyes  at  the  sound. 

"  I  was  on  my  way  to  Akro-Corinth,"  said  he, 


THE    LION    IN   THE    FOX'S    SKIN  95 

rubbing  his  large  dreamy  eyes  with  his  hands,  "and 
I  saw  them  rebuilding  the  Parthenon." 

"  I  stood  at  Thermopylae,"  said  the  girl,  "and  the 
enemy  fell  before  me  by  thousands." 

"  And  now  we  shall  go  to  the  block,"  sighed  Kleon, 
listening  as  the  iron  doors  of  his  dungeon  slowly 
opened. 

"  Be  strong !"  whispered  the  girl,  pressing  the 
hand  of  her  brother  which  was  enlaced  in  hers. 

The  dumb  eunuchs  surrounded  them,  and  led 
them  before  AH  Pasha. 

The  pasha  was  sitting  on  a  divan,  and  still  wore 
his  funeral  robe ;  all  the  furniture  was  shrouded 
with  cinder-colored  cloth ;  there  was  nothing  golden, 
nothing  that  sparkled  in  the  room. 

The  brother  and  sister  stood  before  him,  pressing 
each  other's  hands. 

"  My  dear  children,"  said  the  pasha,  in  a  voice 
that  trembled  with  emotion,  "  don't  look  into  each 
other's  eyes,  but  look  at  me  !" 

At  this  unusual  tone,  at  these  kindly  words,  the 
brother  and  sister  did  look  at  him,  and  perceived 
that  the  old  man  was  looking  at  them  sadly,  doubt- 
fully, and  that  his  eyes  were  full  of  tears. 

Ali  beckoned  to  the  eunuchs,  and  they  freed  the 
brother  and  sister  from  their  chains. 

"  Behold,  ye  are  free,  and  may  return  to  your 
homes,"  said  Ali. 

These  words  had  the  effect  of  an  electric  shock 
upon  the  youth,  and  his  face  lit  up  with  a  flush  of 
joy. 

"  Why  dost  thou  rejoice  ?"  cried  Artemis,  casting 
a  severe  look  upon  him  ;  "  dost  thou  not  perceive 
that  the  monster  is  mocking  us  ?  He  only  wants  to 


96  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

excite  joy  within  us  that  he  may  kindle  our  hopes, 
and  then  make  death  all  the  more  bitter  to  us. 
Why  dost  thou  make  sport  of  us,  thou  old  devil  ? 
Slay  us  quickly,  or  slay  us  with  lingering  torments, 
'tis  all  one  to  us,  but  do  not  mock  us  !" 

Tepelenti  devoutly  raised  his  eyes  to  heaven. 

"  My  soul  is  an  open  book  before  you.  Ye  are 
free.  Ye  free  Suliotes,  we  understand  one  another. 
I  have  sinned  grievously  against  you,  but  ye  have 
revenged  yourself  upon  me.  I  burned  your  villages, 
ye,  in  return,  have  destroyed  my  fortresses.  I  have 
pillaged  your  lands,  and  ye  have  taken  my  pos- 
sessions from  me.  I  have  slain  your  bridegroom 
and  snatched  thee  from  thy  parent's  house  ;  thou 
hast  cut  off  the  head  of  my  favorite  grandson,  and 
ravished  from  me  my  favorite  wife.  Now  we  are 
quits,  and  owe  each  other  nothing.  Go  in  peace  !" 

There  was  so  much  sincerity,  so  much  repentant, 
contrite  grief  in  the  words  of  Ali,  that  the  watchful 
maid  began  to  regard  him  with  curious  sympathy. 

"  Thou  art  amazed  at  my  change  of  countenance," 
said  Ali,  observing  the  impression  his  words  had 
produced  on  Artemis.  "  Thou  hast  not  seen  me 
like  this  before !  That  other  Ali  is  no  more.  He 
died,  and  was  buried.  A  penitent  kneels  before 
thee  who  has  a  horror  of  his  past  sins,  and  begs  thy 
forgiveness,  kissing  the  hem  of  thy  garment." 

And,  indeed,  Ali  fell  down  on  his  knees  before 
Artemis,  in  order  that  he  might  kiss  the  border  of 
her  robe,  and  breaking  forth  into  moans,  shed  tears 
at  the  girl's  feet,  so  that  she  involuntarily  bent 
down  and  raised  him  up. 

She  was  a  woman,  after  all,  and  could  not  bear 
to  see  any  one  weeping  before  her. 


THE    LION    IN    THE   PCX's   SKIN  97 

"  Listen  now  to  what  I  say,"  continued  the  pasha, 
"  and  do  not  fancy  that  AH  has  gone  mad.  This 
night  I  saw  a  vision.  A  beauteous  and  radiantly 
majestic  maiden  descended  'at  my  threshold  from 
the  midst  of  the  bright,  open  heavens,  surrounded 
by  a  company  of  winged  children's  heads.  The 
maiden  looked  at  me  so  gently,  so  kindly.  A  divine 
light  shone  from  her  countenance,  and,  on  the  earth 
beneath,  all  the  flowers  turned  their  faces  towards 
her  as  if  she  were  the  sun.  In  the  arms  of  this 
heavenly  maid  sat  a  child,  but  what  a  child  !  At 
the  sight  of  him,  even  I,  old  man  as  I  am,  trembled 
with  joy.  Round  about  the  head  of  this  child  was 
a  wreath  of  stars,  and  the  smile  upon  his  face  was 
salvation  itself.  And  when  I  raised  my  trembling 
hands  towards  her,  the  heavenly  lady  and  the  child 
extended  their  arms  towards  me,  and  from  the  lips 
of  the  maiden,  in  a  sweet,  inexpressibly  sweet  voice, 
came  these  words  :  '  Ali  Tepelenti,  I  call  thee  !' 
And  I,  all  trembling,  fell  down  on  my  knees  before 
her." 

The  brother  and  sister  involuntarily  knelt  down 
beside  Ali  and  stammered,  full  of  devotion,  "  Blessed 
be  the  most  holy  Virgin  !" 

Ali  Pasha  continued  the  recital  of  his  vision. 

"  With  my  face  covered,  I  listened  to  the  words 
of  the  bright  apparition,  and  now  she  addressed  me 
once  more  in  a  dolorous  voice,  which  pierced  my 
very  heart,  'Ali  Tepelenti,  behold  me  !'  And  when 
I  raised  my  face,  lo  !  I  beheld  seven  swords  point- 
ing towards  the  heart  of  the  heavenly  maid,  and  I 
felt  my  hand  grow  numb  with  fright.  '  Ali  Tepe- 
lenti,' said  the  lady  for  the  third  time,  '  these  swords 
thou  hast  thrust  into  my  wounds,  and  my  blood  be 
7 


98  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

upon  thy  head  !'  And  I,  groaning,  made  answer, 
'  How  could  I  have  done  so  when  I  do  not  know 
thee  ?'  And  she  replied,  '  He  who  persecutes  mine, 
persecutes  me,  and  who  robs  my  temples,  robs  me  ; 
didst  thou  not  pull  down  the  churches  of  Tepelen, 
Turezzo,  and  Tripolizza?'  'I  swear  that  I  will 
build  them  up  again,'  I  replied,  raising  my  hand  to 
give  solemnity  to  my  vow  ;  and  as  I  spoke  one  of 
the  seven  swords  fell  from  the  heart  of  the  lady. 
'  Didst  thou  not  rob  the  Suliotes  of  their  children,' 
inquired  the  heavenly  vision  anew,  '  in  order  to 
bring  them  up  as  Moslems  ?'  '  I  swear  that  I  will 
make  them  Christians  again !'  and  at  these  words 
the  second  sword  fell  out  of  her  heart.  '  Didst  thou 
not  carry  off  their  maidens  for  thine  own  harem  ?' 
'I  swear  that  I  will  give  them  back  to  the  Suliotes  !' 
and  with  that  the  third  sword  fell  from  her  heart. 
'  Didst  thou  not  gather  together  immense  treasures 
from  the  heritage  of  widows  and  orphans  ?'  And, 
smiting  the  ground  with  my  head,  I  answered  :  'All 
my  treasures  shall  be  dedicated  to  thy  service.' 
And  thus  she  recorded  my  mortal  sins  one  by  one, 
and  thus  I  swore  to  make  rigorous  reparation  for 
them  with  an  irrefragable  oath,  and  as  many  times 
as  I  so  swore  a  sword  fell  at  my  feet.  Finally  but 
one  sword  remained  in  her  bleeding  heart,  and  then 
she  asked  me,  '  Hast  thou  not  sought  the  death  of 
that  Suliote  brother  and  sister  who  were  the  most 
faithful  defenders  of  my  altars?  Hast  thou  not 
plunged  them  into  thy  dungeon,  and  is  not  their 
death  already  resolved  upon  in  thy  heart  ?'  And, 
terrified,  I  laid  my  hand  upon  my  heart,  for  verily 
that  thought  was  in  it,  and  not  without  a  fierce 
struggle,  I  stammered,  '  Oh,  heavenly  vision  !  these 


THE    LION   IN    THE    FOX  S    SKIN  99 

two  young  people  are  my  mightiest  enemies,  and 
they  have  sworn  to  kill  me ;  yet  if  thou  dost  com- 
mand it  I  will  lay  my  gray  head  in  their  hands,  and 
I  will  be  in  their  power,  not  they  in  mine.'  At 
these  words  the  last  sword  also  fell  from  her  heart, 
and  she  answered,  'AH  Tepelenti,  take  these  swords 
in  thy  hand,  and  do  as  thou  hast  said.'  And 
with  that  she  reascended  into  heaven,  the  clouds 
closed  behind  her,  and  I  remained  alone  with  the 
seven  swords  in  my  hand,  on  which  seven  vows 
were  written.  This  vision  I  saw  in  the  night  that 
has  just  past ;  and  now  reflect  upon  my  words." 

The  minds  of  the  brother  and  sister  were  deeply 
agitated.  The  old  Moslem  before  them  had  spoken 
with  such  devotion,  with  such  enthusiasm  of  his 
vision,  that  it  was  impossible  to  question  its  reality. 
The  emotion  visible  in  his  countenance,  the  tears  in 
his  eyes,  the  tremor  in  his  voice,  proved  that  he  really 
felt  what  he  said.  While  they  were  standing  there 
pondering  over  the  old  man's  vision,  he  took  them 
by  the  hand  and  led  them  into  his  treasure-chamber, 
and  showed  them  the  heaps  and  heaps  of  gold  and 
silver,  the  coins  piled  up  in  vats,  and  the  steel  which 
had  been  melted  into  bars  and  stacked  up  there. 

"  My  treasures  are  at  your  disposal — use  them  as 
you  will."  Then,  selecting  from  amongst  his  choicest 
diamonds  two  stones,  worth  a  hundred  thousand 
sequins,  he  placed  them  in  the  hands  of  Kleon  and 
Artemis,  and  said,  "  These  I  will  send  to  the  war- 
chest  of  the  Hetasria  !" 

Why,  what  does  AH  mean  by  mentioning  this 
secret  society,  which  had  already  undermined  the 
whole  Turkish  Empire — just  as  he  had  undermined 
Janina  ?  Perhaps  he  would  fire  these  mines  also  ! 


100  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

Of  a  truth  the  arm  of  Ali  reached  as  far  as  Stam- 
bul !  aye,  and  as  far  as  Bucharest  also. 

And  now  he  led  the  brother  and  sister  into  his 
armory,  and  there  they  saw  whole  chests  full  of 
firearms  from  the  manufactories  of  the  best  English 
and  French  makers. 

"  You  see,  I  could  arm  a  whole  realm  with  the 
weapons  I  have  in  Janina." 

The  brother  and  sister  sighed  ;  one  and  the  same 
thought  suddenly  occurred  to  them  both. 

"  Tepelenti,"  said  the  girl. 

"Command  me  !" 

"  Thou  hast  done  much  harm  to  us,  we  also  have 
done  much  harm  to  thee ;  let  us  act  as  if  we  now 
saw  each  other  for  the  first  time." 

"I  forgive  you." 

"  I  will  forget  that  thou  didst  put  to  death  my 
betrothed  in  this  room,  and  thou  forget  that  we 
killed  thy  grandson.  Call  to  mind,  moreover,  that 
not  only  are  we  captives  in  this  fortress,  but  thou 
art  also  surrounded  by  the  hosts  of  thine  enemies." 

"  I  alone  am  a  captive,"  said  Ali,  humbly.  "  I 
swear  by  Allah,  as  I  have  promised  the  holy  Virgin, 
that  I  will  let  you  and  all  your  companions  free  ! 
What  may  happen  to  you  after  that  I  care  not. 
Ali  has  not  long  to  live  now.  But  your  days  of 
combat  are  yet  to  be,  and  if  ever  the  time  should 
come  when  your  plans  need  the  help  of  arms  and 
treasures,  remember  that  there  is  enough  of  both 
at  Janina." 

Artemis  was  constrained  to  believe  in  the  sin- 
cerity of  Ali's  words. 

And  now  the  pasha,  with  his  own  hand,  selected 
two  beautiful  Damascus  blades  from  among  his  store 


THE    LION   IN   THE    FOX  S    SKIN  IOI 

of  weapons,  and  bound  them  to  the  girdles  of  the 
brother  and  sister.  What  a  warmth  of  self-confi- 
dence came  over  them  when  they  felt  once  more 
that  they  had  swords  by  their  sides  ! 

Then  he  led  them  down  to  their  companions,  who 
were  assembled  in  the  court-yard  of  the  fortress, 
and  informed  them  that  they  were  free  to  go  whith- 
er they  would.  And  then  he  put  wine  and  pilaf  be- 
fore the  jubilant  crowd  of  captives,  and  left  them  to 
eat  and  drink  with  his  own  Arnauts  ;  and,  beneath 
the  peace-making  influence  of  the  good  wine,  it  was 
not  very  long  before  they  fell  to  kissing  one  another 
and  swearing  eternal  fellowship  like  brothers. 

Then  Ali  produced  his  best  long-range  rifles,  with 
bayonets  attached,  and  distributed  them  amongst 
the  captive  Suliotes  ;  he  had  not  the  least  fear  now 
that  they  would  turn  these  arms  against  him.  Then 
he  kissed  the  brother  and  sister  on  their  foreheads, 
and,  giving  them  his  blessing,  let  them  through  that 
secret  tunnel  which  led  into  the  town. 

Meanwhile,  in  Gaskho  Bey's  camp  outside  curious 
reports  began  to  circulate.  A  pair  of  captured  Al- 
banians, who  had  been  surprised  amongst  the  ruins 
of  the  town  when  Ali  retreated,  began  to  make  the 
most  astounding  revelations  before  their  judges ; 
amongst  other  things  they  maintained  that  the  Suli- 
otes, in  the  camp  of  the  bey,  had  a  secret  under- 
standing with  the  Pasha  of  Janina — their  former 
master.  And,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  every  one  had 
observed  that  Ali  had  quitted  the  field  of  battle 
rather  than  fire  upon  the  Suliotes. 

But  the  captives  confessed  still  more.  They  said 
that  Artemis  and  Kleon  had  had  secret  meetings 


102  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

with  Ali  in  the  subterranean  tunnel,  arid  had  sur- 
rendered to  him  voluntarily.  It  must  have  been  so, 
argued  those  who  had  survived  the  last  sally.  Ali 
had  made  his  assault  from  the  tower  at  the  head  of 
the  bridge,  and  yet  the  Suliotes  there  had  not  so 
much  as  fired  a  gun  to  signify  his  approach. 

The  captives  also  insisted  that  Ali  was  going  to 
make  another  sally  on  the  following  night  against 
the  besieging  army,  and  then  all  the  Christians  in 
the  camp  of  the  bey  would  join  him. 

These  reports,  with  still  more  terrible  variations, 
began  to  extend  throughout  the  whole  army,  and 
here  and  there  slight  m$l<!es  even  took  place  between 
Christians  and  Moslems.  The  Osmanlis  began  to 
threaten  the  foreign  soldiers,  and  the  latter  began 
to  everywhere  form  themselves  into  independent 
little  bands  for  mutual  protection. 

Gaskho  Bey  and  Pehlivan  Pasha  hastily  summon- 
ed a  council  of  war  at  this  disquieting  symptom, 
and  it  was  there  resolved  that  the  Greeks  should  be 
disarmed.  For  this  purpose  they  assembled  them 
together  in  the  midst  of  the  camp,  surrounded  them 
with  Turkish  veterans,  and  then,  pointing  the  guns 
at  them,  summoned  them  to  instantly  lay  down 
their  arms  or  they  should  all  be  shot  down  like  dogs. 

The  Suliotes  and  Albanians  listened  to  this  sum- 
mons with  terror.  They  beheld  the  bloodthirsty 
masses  around  them,  and  reflected  how  many  times 
men  had  lost  their  lives  by  surrendering  the  very 
weapons  wherewith  they  might  have  defended  them- 
selves, and,  in  their  hesitation,  they  chose  out  twelve 
youths  from  amongst  their  ranks  to  go  to  the  gen- 
eral and  ask  the  reason  of  this  alarming  demon- 
stration. 


THE    LION   IN  THE    FOX  S   SKIN  103 

Gaskho  Bey  was  still  in  a  towering  passion,  and 
the  bold  speech  of  the  young  men  irritated  him 
still  further.  He  had  them  dragged  into  the  midst 
of  the  camp,  in  front  of  the  assembled  battalions, 
and  commanded  that  their  heads  should  be  cut  off, 
proclaiming  at  the  same  time  that  any  who  dared 
to  disobey  this  order  should  meet  with  the  same 
fate. 

The  garments  of  the  twelve  young  men  were 
stripped  from  off  them  in  the  presence  of  their  com- 
rades, and  the  usual  head  severing  giant  stood  be- 
hind them,  ready  to  force  them  down  upon  their 
knees  and  decapitate  them  one  by  one.  But  he  had 
not  yet  cut  off  a  single  head  when  a  loud  noise  was 
heard  coming  from  the  direction  of  Janina  ;  it  was 
the  liberated  sister  and  brother,  Artemis  and  Kleon, 
at  the  head  of  their  bands.  They  had  beheld  from 
the  tower  of  Janina  the  danger  which  threatened 
their  comrades,  and  arrived  just  as  the  executioners 
were  preparing  to  carry  out  Gaskho  Bey's  com- 
mands. 

The  Suliotes  scattered  here  and  there  looked  at 
each  other.  A  tremendous  roar  filled  the  air  —  a 
roar  of  grief  and  rage  and  terror — breaking  forth 
into  despair.  Those  from  before,  those  from  behind, 
fell  upon  the  ranks  of  the  Moslems.  In  a  moment 
Gaskho  Bey's  whole  camp  was  converted  into  a 
chaotic  mob,  where  Albanians  and'Spahis,  Suliotes 
and  Timariotes,  fought  together  without  any  fixed 
plan,  and,  in  utter  defiance  of  all  military  science, 
recognizing  neither  friend  nor  foe.  In  vain  the 
standard-bearers  raised  their  banners,  in  vain  the 
officers  of  the  Spahis  roared  themselves  hoarse,  and 
the  Sorbadzhis  and  the  gigantic  Gaskho  Bey  himself 


104  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

did  the  same.  The  army  was  so  completely  disor- 
ganized that  not  even  the  victorious  enemy  could 
make  head  or  tail  of  it.  Towards  evening  the  Suli- 
otes,  under  Kleon  and  Artemis,  captured  Lithan- 
izza  ;  while  Gaskho  Bey,  in  his  despair,  fled  all  the 
way  to  Durazzo.  When  he  got  there  he  discovered 
that  of  all  his  army  only  twelve  ciauses  remained 
with  him.  The  whole  host  had  fled  higgledy-pig- 
gledy along  the  first  road  it  came  across,  leaving 
behind  it  all  its  artillery,  baggage,  and  ammunition 
wagons. 

But  Ali  Pasha,  sweetly  smiling,  calmly  looked  on 
from  the  red  tower  of  Janina,  while  the  enemy 
worried  itself  to  death,  and  the  besieging  thousands 
scattered  in  every  direction  without  his  having  to 
waste  a  single  cannon-shot  upon  them. 

But  as  I  have  already  said,  Ali  was  often  so  re- 
duced as  to  possess  nothing  but  his  sword,  and  with 
this  same  sword  he  would  win  everything  back 
again. 


CHAPTER  VII 
THE   ALBANIAN   FAMILY 

AND  now  we  will  let  the  rumor  of  great  deeds  rest 
a  while  ;  we  will  close  our  eyes  to  the  wars  that  fol- 
lowed upon  the  siege  of  Janina ;  we  will  shut  our 
ears  against  the  echoes  of  the  names  of  a  Ulysses, 
Tepelenti,  a  Kolokotrini,  those  heroes  who  shook  the 
throne  of  the  Sultan,  and  all  of  whom  the  Pasha  of 
Janina  called  his  very  dear  friends.  While  these 
bloody  wars  are  raging  we  will  turn  into  the  grove 
of  Dodona,  where  formerly  the  ambiguous  utterances 
of  sacred  prophecies  were  always  resounding  in  the 
ears  of  contemplative  dreamers.  Let  us  go  back 
eighty  years  !  Let  us  seek  out  that  quiet  little 
glen  whither  neither  good  report  nor  evil  report 
ever  comes  flying,  whose  inhabitants  know  of  noth- 
ing but  what  happens  amongst  their  own  fir-trees  ; 
why,  even  the  tax-collecting  Spahi  only  light  down 
amongst  them  to  levy  contributions  once  in  a  cen- 
tury ! 

The  house  of  Halil  Patrona's  consort  no  longer 
stands  beside  the  rippling  stream.  Nobody  even 
knows  the  tomb  in  which  the  beautiful,  the  elfin 
Giil-Bejaze  now  lies  ;  Giil-Bejaze,  the  White  Rose,* 

*  The  heroine  of  another  Turkish  tale  of  Jokai's,  A  feher  rdzsa 
(The  White  Rose}. 


106  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

blooms  no  longer  anywhere  in  that  valley.  Nobody 
knows  the  name  even  ;  only  the  oldest  old  grand- 
mother in  the  circle  of  the  spinning  maidens  can 
tell  them  tales,  which  she  also  has  heard  from 
her  mother  or  her  grandmother,  of  a  mad  lady  who 
used  to  dwell  in  this  valley  and  lay  a  table  every 
evening  and  prepare  a  couch  every  night  for  an  in- 
visible spirit,  whom  she  called  her  husband,  and 
whom  nobody  saw  but  herself. 

This  old  woman  had  a  son  called  Behram,  a  brave, 
honest,  worthy  youth  ;  many  a  time  with  his  com- 
rades he  would  pursue  the  Epirot  bandits,  who 
swooped  down  upon  their  valley  and  carried  off 
their  cattle. 

Near  to  him  dwelt  the  widow  Khamko,  whose  hus- 
band had  been  shot  at  Tepelen,  and  who,  with  her 
son,  little  Ali,  in  her  bosom,  had  sought  refuge 
amongst  these  mountains. 

Formerly  Khamko  was  a  gentle  creature,  but 
when  they  began  to  talk  to  her  about  the  mad  lady 
she  also  grew  as  crazy  as  ever  the  other  was.  She 
was  ready  to  destroy  the  whole  world,  and  over  and 
over  again  she  would  utter  the  wildest  things  ;  she 
would  like,  she  said,  to  see  the  whole  four  corners 
of  the  world  set  on  fire  so  that  the  flames  might 
shoot  up  on  all  four  sides  of  it,  and  every  living 
man  within  it,  good  as  well  as  bad,  might  be  burned. 
Listen  not  to  such  words,  O  Allah  ! 

Behram  was  a  very  quiet  fellow,  not  more  than 
six  and  twenty  years  old  ;  little  Ali  was  scarce  six- 
teen. But  this  wild,  restless  lad  was  already  wont 
to  wander  for  days  together  amongst  the  glens  and 
mountains,  and  whenever  he  came  home  he  invaria- 
bly brought  his  mother  money  or  jewels.  And  no- 


THE   ALBANIAN   FAMILY  1 07 

body  knew  whence  he  got  them  save  Behram,  to 
whom  the  youth  confessed  everything,  for  he  loved 
him  dearly. 

AH  joined  the  company  of  the  Epirot  adventur- 
ers, and  with  them  he  would  go  sacking  villages, 
waylaying  rich  merchants,  and  shared  with  them 
the  easily  gotten  booty. 

And  whenever  he  returned  home  without  money, 
his  mother,  Khamko,  would  rail  upon  and  chide  him, 
and  let  him  have  no  peace  until  he  had  engaged  in 
fresh  and  more  lucrative  robberies. 

Behram  looked  askance  at  the  perilous  ways  of 
his  young  comrade,  and  as  often  as  he  was  alone 
with  him  did  his  best  to  fill  his  mind  with  honest, 
noble  ideas,  which  also  seemed  to  make  some  im- 
pression on  Ali,  for  he  gradually  began  to  abandon 
his  marauding  ways,  and  in  order  that  he  might  still 
be  able  to  get  money  for  his  mother,  he  fell  to  sell- 
ing his  sheep  and  his  goats,  and  even  parted  with 
his  long,  silver-mounted  musket.  At  last  he  had 
nothing  left  but  his  sword.  Dame  Khamko,  mean- 
while, scolded  Ali  unmercifully.  If  he  wanted  to 
eat,  let  him  go  seek  his  bread,  she  said.  And  the  lad 
wandered  through  the  woods  and  thickets,  and  lived 
for  a  long  time  on  the  berries  of  the  forest.  At  last, 
one  day,  when  he  was  wellnigh  famished  and  in  the 
depths  of  misery,  he  came  upon  an  Armenian  inn- 
keeper standing  in  the  doorway  of  his  lonely  little 
tavern.  Ali  rushed  upon  him,  sword  in  hand,  like 
a  wolf  perishing  with  hunger.  The  Armenian  was  a 
worthy  old  fellow,  and  when  he  saw  Ali  he  said  to  him : 

"What  dost  thou  want,  my  son  ?" 

The  honest,  open  look  of  the  old  man  shamed  Ali, 
and  casting  down  his  eyes,  he  replied  :  "  I  want  to 


I08  THE    LION    OP  JANINA 

give  thee  this  sword."  Yet  the  moment  before  he 
had  determined  to  slay  him  with  it. 

The  Armenian  took  the  sword  from  him,  and  gave 
him  ten  sequins  in  exchange  for  it,  besides  meat 
and  drink.  So  AH  returned  home  without  his 
sword. 

When  Dame  Khamko  saw  her  son  return  home 
disarmed  she  was  greatly  incensed  and  exclaimed  : 

"  What  hast  thou  done  with  thy  sword  ?" 

"I  have  sold  it,"  answered  Ali,  resolutely. 

At  this  the  mother  flew  into  a  violent  rage,  and 
catching  up  a  bludgeon,  belabored  Ali  with  it  until 
she  was  tired.  The  big,  muscular  lad  allowed  him- 
self to  be  beaten,  and  neither  wept  nor  said  a  word, 
nor  even  tried  to  defend  himself. 

"And  now  dost  see  that  spindle?"  cried  Dame 
Khamko.  "  Learn  to  spin  the  thread  and  turn  the 
bobbins  quickly  ;  thou  shalt  not  eat  idle  bread  at 
home,  I  can  tell  thee.  A  man  who  can  sell  his  sword 
is  fit  for  nothing  but  to  sit  beside  a  distaff." 

So  Ali  sat  down  to  spin. 

For  a  couple  of  days  he  endured  the  insults  which 
his  mother  heaped  upon  him,  and  on  the  third  day 
he  returned  to  the  Armenian,  to  whom  he  had  sold 
his  sword,  robbed  him  of  and  slew  of  him  with  it, 
plundered  and  burned  down  his  house,  and  from 
thenceforth  became  such  a  famous  robber  that  the 
whole  countryside  lived  in  mortal  terror  of  him. 

Dame  Khamko  lived  a  long  time  after  this  event, 
and  ruined  her  son's  soul  altogether  by  urging  him 
to  kill  and  slay  without  mercy,  till  one  fine  day 
her  son  murdered  her  likewise,  and  thus  added  her 
blood  also  to  the  blood  of  those  whom,  at  his  moth- 
er's instigation,  he  had  cruelly  murdered. 


THE   ALBANIAN    FAMILY  109 

And  this  lad  became  the  Pasha  of  Janina,  Ali 
Tepelenti ! 

Through  what  an  ocean  of  treachery,  perjury, 
robbery,  and  homicide  he  had  to  wade  before  he 
attained  to  that  eminence  !  How  often  was  he  not 
so  reduced  as  to  have  nothing  left  but  his  sword 
and  his  crafty  brain?  But  many  a  time,  in  the 
midst  of  his  most  brilliant  successes,  in  the  very 
plenitude  of  his  power,  he  would  bethink  him  of  the 
two  quiet  little  huts  where  he  and  Behram  had 
been  wont  to  dwell.  He  never  heard  of  Behram 
now,  but  he  used  frequently  to  think  in  those  days 
and  wonder  what  would  have  become  of  himself  if 
he  had  listened  to  Behram's  words  and  lived  a 
quiet,  contented  life.  'Tis  true  he  would  not  have 
been  so  mighty  a  man  as  he  was  now,  but  would  he 
not  have  been  a  much  happier  one? 

Once,  when  he  was  a  very  great  potentate,  he 
had  visited  the  little  village  in  the  glen  in  which 
they  had  hidden  away  together.  But  nobody  would 
tell  him  anything  of  Behram.  He  had  disappeared 
none  knew  whither.  Perhaps  he  had  died  since 
then  ! 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE    PEN    OP   MAHMOUD 

WHEN,  during  the  reign  of  Mahmoud  II.,  the 
caravan  of  Meccan  pilgrims  was  plundered*  by  the 
Vechabites,  lying  in  ambush,  the  Sultan  ordered 
the  rulers  of  Meccao  and  Medina  to  immediately 
send  to  the  lair  of  the  Vechabites  and  buy  back  the 
dervishes  Avith  ready  money. 

The  Vechabites  gave  up  the  captives  in  exchange 
for  the  ransom  sent  them,  but  they  adhered  so 
rigidly  to  the  terms  of  the  bargain  whereby  they 
were  to  surrender  the  captives  only,  that  they  even 
kept  for  themselves  the  garments  that  happened  to 
be  on  the  captives,  and  let  nothing  go  but  their  bare 
bodies,  on  which  account  Mahmoud  was  obliged 
to  give  his  rescued  subjects  raiment  as  well  as 
freedom. 

Amongst  those  who  were  so  liberated  was  a  der- 
vish of  the  Nimetullahita  order,  who,  after  this  in- 
cident was  over,  arose,  sought  out  the  Sultan  and 
said  to  him,  "  Thou  art  a  poor  potentate.  Thou  art 
the  most  sorry  of  all  the  caliphs.  Thou  art  the 
greatest  son  of  suffering*  among  all  the  sultans 
who  have  gone  before  thee,  or  shall  come  after  thee. 
I  thank  thee  for  delivering  me  from  the  hands  of 

*  /..?.,  patient  of  insult. 


THE    PEN   OF   MAHMOUD  III 

the  Vechabites,*  and  as  a  reward,  therefore,  I  bring 
thee  a  gift  which,  even  when  they  left  me  without 
any  raiment,  I  was  still  able  to  conceal  from  them." 

And  with  that  he  produced  a  writing-reed  and 
gave  it  to  the  Sultan,  and  when  Mahmoud  asked 
him  in  what  way  he  had  concealed  it  from  the  eyes 
of  the  robbers,  he  explained  how  he  had  cunningly 
thrust  it  into  his  thick  black  beard,  where  nobody 
had  perceived  it. 

Mahmoud  accepted  the  gift  of  the  dervish,  and 
put  it  where  he  put  his  other  curiosities  ;  but  he 
did  not  think  of  it  for  very  long,  and  gradually  it 
escaped  his  memory  altogether. 

One  day,  however,  when  one  of  his  favorite  dam- 
sels, moved  by  curiosity,  had  induced  him  to  show 
her  the  treasures  of  his  palace,  and  they  came  to 
the  spot  where  lay  the  pen  of  the  dervish,  the  dam- 
sel suddenly  cried  out,  and  said  that  she  had  seen 
the  pen  move. 

The  Sultan  looked  in  that  direction,  and,  observ- 
ing nothing,  treated  the  whole  affair  as  a  joke,  and 
went  on  showing  the  damsel  the  accumulated  relics 
and  curiosities  of  centuries  which  thirteen  succes- 
sive Sultans  had  stored  up  in  the  khazne  or  treas- 
ury, and  then  gave  the  damsel  permission  to  choose 
for  herself  whichever  of  these  treasures  might 
please  her  most. 

Many  costly  things  were  there  covered  with 
gems,  and  worth,  each  one  of  them,  half  a  kingdom  ; 
there  were  also  rare  and  precious  relics,  and  antiq- 
uities rich  in  historical  associations.  But  the  Sul- 

*  The  Vechabites  are  accounted  heretics  by  the  orthodox  Mussul- 
mans. 


112  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

tan's  pet  damsel  chose  for  herself  none  of  these 
things ;  to  the  amazement  of  the  Padishah,  she  only 
asked  for  this  simple  black  pen. 

Mahmoud  was  astonished,  but  he  granted  the 
damsel  her  wish,  and  making  light  of  it,  he  gave 
her  the  writing-reed  which  was  fashioned  out  of  a 
simple  bamboo  cane,  and  was  nothing  very  remark- 
able even  at  that. 

The  odalisk  took  the  pen  away  with  her  to  her 
room,  and  waited  from  morning  to  night  to  see  it 
move.  But  the  pen  calmly  rested  where  she  had 
placed  it  all  day  long  and  all  night  too,  and  the 
odalisk  began  to  be  sorry  that  she  had  not  rather 
selected  for  herself  some  other  more  precious  thing 
instead  of  the  object  of  her  curiosity  ;  but  one  even- 
ing, when  the  Sultan  was  visiting  her  in  her  flow- 
ery chamber,  and  they  were  holding  sweet  converse 
together,  they  suddenly  heard  in  the  room,  where 
nobody  was  present  but  themselves,  a  faint  sound 
as  if  some  one  were  writing  in  great  haste,  the 
scratching  of  a  pen  on  the  extended  parchment 
was  distinctly  audible. 

They  both  looked  in  the  direction  of  the  sound, 
and  words  failed  them  in  their  astonishment,  for 
behold  !  the  writing-reed  was  half  raised  in  the  air, 
just  as  when  one  is  holding  it  in  his  hand,  and  it 
seemed  to  be  writing  of  its  own  accord  on  the 
parchment  extended  beneath  it. 

The  damsel  trembled  for  terror,  while  the  Sultan, 
who  was  a  stranger  alike  to  fear  or  superstition, 
imagining  that  perhaps  a  spider  had  got  into  the 
upper  part  of  the  reed,  and  consequently  made  it 
move  up  and  down,  and  anxious  to  convince  his 
favorite  thereof,  approached  the  table,  and  took 


THE    PEN   OF   MAHMOUD  113 

up  the  pen  in  order  to  shake  the  spider  out  of  it. 
But  there  was  nothing  at  all  there,  and  the  pen 
went  on  writing  of  its  own  accord. 

The  Sultan  himself  began  to  be  astonished  at 
this  phenomenon.  What  the  pen  seemed  to  be  so 
diligently  writing  remained  a  hidden  script,  how- 
ever, for  its  point  had  not  been  dipped  in  ink. 
Wishing,  therefore,  to  put  it  to  the  test,  the  Sultan 
dipped  the  point  of  the  reed  in  a  little  box  full  of 
that  red  balsamic  salve  with  which  Turkish  girls 
are  wont  to  paint  their  lips,  and  then  placed  it  on 
a  smooth,  clean  sheet  of  parchment,  whereupon  it 
again  arose,  and  wrote  in  bright,  plainly  intelli- 
gible letters  these  words,  "  Mahmoud  !  Mahmoud  !" 

The  Sultan's  own  heart  began  to  beat  when  he 
saw  his  own  name  written  before  his  eyes,  and  he 
inquired  with  something  like  consternation,  "  What 
dost  thou  want  of  me  ?" 

The  pen  immediately  wrote  down  again  these  two 
words,  "  Mahmoud  !  Mahmoud  !"  and  then  lay  still. 

"That  is  my  name,"  said  the  Sultan  ;  "but  who 
then  art  thou,  O  invisible  spirit  ?" 

The  pen  again  arose  and  wrote  beneath  the  name 
of  Mahmoud  this  name  also,  "  Halil  Patrona  !" 

Mahmoud  trembled  at  this  name.  It  was  the 
name  of  a  man  who  had  been  murdered  by  one  of 
his  ancestors,  and  if  the  apparition  of  a  spirit  be 
terrible  in  itself,  how  much  more  the  spirit  of  a 
murdered  man  ! 

"  What  dost  thou  want  here  ?"  exclaimed  the  ter- 
rified Sultan. 

The  pen  answered,  "  To  warn  thee  !" 

"  Perchance  a  danger  threatens  me,  eh  ?"  inquired 
the  Sultan. 


114  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

"'Tis  near  thee  !"  wrote  the  pen. 

"  Whence  comes  this  danger  ?" 

And  now  the  pen  wrote  a  long  row  of  letters, 
and  this  was  the  purport  thereof,  "  A  great  danger 
from  the  East,  a  greater  from  the  West,  a  greater 
still  from  the  North,  and  here  at  home  the  greatest 
of  all." 

"Where  will  the  Faithful  fight?"  asked  the  Sul- 
tan. 

"  In  the  whole  realm  !"  was  the  reply. 

"Near  which  towns?" 

"  Near  every  town  and  within  every  town." 

"  How  long  will  the  war  last  ?" 

"Nine  years." 

It  was  now  the  year  eighteen  hundred  and  twen- 
ty, and  there  was  not  a  sign  of  danger  at  any  point 
of  the  vast  boundaries  of  the  Turkish  empire. 

The  Sultan  permitted  himself  one  more  question : 
"Tell  me,  shall  I  triumph  in  these  wars  ?" 

The  pen  replied,  "  Thou  wilt  not." 

"  Who  will  be  my  enemies  ?" 

There  the  pen  stopped  short,  as  if  it  were  reflect- 
ing on  something  ;  at  last  it  wrote  down,  "Another 
time." 

The  Sultan  did  not  understand  this  answer,  so 
he  repeated  his  question,  and  now  the  pen  wrote, 
"Ask  in  another  place  !" 

"Where?" 

"Alone." 

Evidently  it  would  not  answer  the  question  in 
the  presence  of  the  Sultan's  favorite.  It  did  not 
trust  her. 

The  Sultan  almost  believed  that  he  was  dream- 
ing, but  now  his  favorite  damsel  also  drew  near 


THE    PEN   OP   MAHMOUD  115 

and,  leaning  on  Mahmoud's  shoulder,  stammered 
forth,  "  Prithee,  mighty  spirit,  wilt  thou  answer 
me?" 

And  the  pen  replied,  "  I  will." 

The  woman  asked,  "  Tell  me,  will  Mahmoud  love 
me  to  the  death  ?" 

The  Sultan  was  somewhat  offended.  "  By  the 
prophet  !"  cried  he,  "  that  thou  shouldst  put  such  a 
question  !" 

But  what  is  not  a  living  woman  capable  of  ask- 
ing? 

The  pen  quivered  gently  as  it  wrote  down  the 
words,  "  He  will  love  thee  till  thou  diest." 

"  And  when  shall  I  die  ?" 

To  this  the  pen  gave  no  answer. 

In  vain  the  favorite  pressed  her  question.  How 
many  years,  how  many  months,  how  many  days  had 
she  to  live  ?  The  spirit  answered  nothing. 

"  And  how  shall  I  die  ?"  asked  the  woman. 

The  Sultan  shivered  at  this  senseless  question, 
and  would  have  made  the  girl  withdraw  ;  but,  in  an 
instant,  the  pen  had  written  out  the  answer,  "  Thou 
shalt  be  killed." 

The  woman  grew  as  pale  as  a  wax  figure,  and 
stammered,  "  Who  will  kill  me  ?" 

Both  of  them  awaited  in  terror  and  with  baited 
breath  what  the  pen  would  answer,  and  the  pen, 
taking  good  care  not  to  form  a  single  illegible  let- 
ter, wrote  on  the  parchment,  "  Mahmoud  !" 

The  favorite  fell  unconscious  into  the  arms  of 
the  Sultan,  who,  carrying  her  away,  laid  her  on  the 
divan,  watching  over  her  till  she  came  to  herself 
again,  and  then  comforting  her  with  wise  saws. 

An  evil,  mocking  spirit  dwelt  in  the  reed,  he  said, 


1 1 6  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

consolingly,  who  only  uttered  its  forebodings  to 
agitate  their  hearts.  "  Did  it  not  say  also  that  I 
should  love  thee  to  the  death  ?  How  then  could  I 
slay  thee  ?  A  lying  spirit  dwelleth  in  that  reed  !" 

And  yet  the  Sultan  himself  was  trembling  all  the 
time. 

That  night  no  sleep  visited  his  eyes,  and  early  in 
the  morning  he  took  the  reed  from  his  favorite  by 
force,  telling  her  that  he  was  going  to  throw  it  into 
the  fire. 

But  he  did  not  throw  it  into  the  fire.  On  the 
contrary,  the  Sultan  frequently  produced  it,  and, 
inasmuch  as  he  sometimes  convicted  the  spirit  of  a 
false  prophecy,  he  began  to  regard  the  whole  thing 
as  a  sort  of  magic  hocus-pocus,  invented  by  the 
kindly  Fates  to  amuse  mankind  by  its  oddity,  and 
he  frequently  made  it  serve  as  a  plaything  for  the 
whole  harem,  gathering  the  odalisks  together  and 
compelling  the  enchanted  pen  to  answer  all  sorts  of 
petty  questions,  as,  for  instance,  "  How  old  is  the 
old  kadun-keit-khuda  ?"  "  How  many  sequins  are 
in  the  purse  of  the  Kizlar  -  Agasi  ?"  "At  what 
o'clock  did  the  Sultan  awake  ?"  "  When  will  the 
Sultan's  tulips  arrive  ?"  "  How  many  heads  were 
thrown  to-day  into  the  sea  ?"  "  Is  Sadi,  the  poet, 
still  alive?"  etc.,  etc.  Or  they  forced  the  pen  to 
translate  the  verses  of  Victor  Hugo  into  Turkish, 
Arabic,  and  Persian.  And  the  pen  patiently  ac- 
complished everything.  At  last  it  became  quite  a 
pet  plaything  with  the  odalisks,  and  the  favorite 
Sultana  altogether  forgot  the  evil  prophecy  which 
it  had  written  down  for  her. 

Now  it  chanced  one  day  that  the  famous  filibus- 
terer  Microconchalys,  who  had  for  a  long  time  dis- 


THE    PEN   OF   MAHMOUD  117 

turbed  the  archipelago  with  his  cruisers,  and  defied 
the  whole  fleet  of  the  Sultan,  encountered  in  the 
open  sea,  off  Candia,  a  British  man-of-war,  which 
he  was  mad  enough  to  attack  with  three  galleys. 
In  less  than  an  hour  all  three  galleys  were  blown  to 
the  bottom  of  the  sea,  nothing  of  them  remaining 
on  the  surface  of  the  water  but  their  well-known 
flags,  which  Morrison,  the  victorious  English  cap- 
tain, conveyed  to  Stambul,  and  there  presented 
them  to  the  Divan. 

Boundless  was  the  joy  of  the  Sultan  at  the  death 
of  the  vexatious  filibusterer,  and  there  was  joy  in 
the  harem  also,  for  a  feast  of  lamps  was  to  be  held 
there  the  same  night,  and  Morrison  was  to  be  pre- 
sented to  the  Divan  on  the  following  day  to  be 
loaded  with  gifts  and  favors. 

At  night,  therefore,  there  was  great  mirth  among 
the  odalisks.  The  Sultan  himself  was  drunk  with 
joy,  wine,  and  love,  and  the  hilarious  Sultana 
brought  forth  the  magic  pen  to  make  them  mirth, 
and  compelled  it  to  answer  the  drollest  questions, 
as,  for  instance,  "  How  many  hairs  are  there  in 
Mahmoud's  head  ?"  "  How  many  horses  are  there 
in  the  stable  ?"  and  "  How  many  soldiers  are  there 
on  the  sea?"  And,  finally,  laughing  aloud,  she 
commanded  it  to  tell  her  how  many  hours  she  had 
to  live. 

Ah,  surely  a  life  full  of  joy  lay  before  her !  But 
the  Sultan  shook  his  head  ;  one  ought  not  to  tempt 
God  with  such  questions. 

The  pen  would  not  write. 

Then  the  favorite  cried  angrily,  "  Answer  !  or  I 
will  compel  thee  to  count  all  the  drops  of  water  in 
the  Black  Sea,  from  here  to  Jenikale  in  the  Crimea  !" 


Il8  THE    LION   OP  JANINA 

At  these  words  the  pen,  with  a  quivering  move- 
ment, arose,  and  scratching  the  paper  with  a  shrill 
sound,  as  if  it  would  weep  and  moan,  wrote  down 
some  utterly  unintelligible  characters,  with  the  num- 
ber "8"  beneath  them,  and  surrounded  the  whole 
writing  with  a  circle  to  signify  that  there  was  noth- 
ing more  to  come. 

Everybody  laughed.  It  was  plain  that  the  spirit 
also  loved  its  little  joke,  and  was  angry  with  the 
Sultana  for  torturing  it  with  so  many  silly  ques- 
tions. 

It  was  then  the  third  hour  after  midnight,  all  the 
clocks  in  the  room  had  at  that  moment  struck  the 
hour.  After  that  the  odalisks  fell  a-dancing  again, 
and  the  eunuch-buffoons  exhibited  a  puppet  show  on 
a  curtained  stage,  which  greatly  diverted  the  ladies 
of  the  harem.  But  the  number  "  8  "  would  not  go 
out  of  the  head  of  the  favorite,  and  as  all  the  clocks 
in  the  room,  one  after  the  other,  struck  four,  she 
took  out  the  pen,  and  with  an  incredulous,  mocking 
smile  on  her  face,  but  with  horror  in  her  heart,  she 
asked,  "  Come,  tell  me  again,  if  thou  hast  not  for- 
gotten, how  many  hours  have  I  got  to  live  ?" 

The  pen  wrote  down  the  number  "  7." 

Those  who  stood  around  now  began  to  tremble. 
But  Mahmoud  treated  the  whole  affair  as  a  joke, 
and  assured  them  that  the  pen  was  only  making 
them  sport.  And  again  they  went  on  diverting 
themselves. 

An  hour  later  the  clocks,  in  the  usual  sequence, 
struck  the  hour  of  five.  And  now  the  favorite  stole 
aside,  and  placing  the  reed  on  a  table  repeated  her 
former  question.  And  the  pen  wrote  down  the 
number  "  6." 


THE    PEN   OF   MAHMOUD  119 

Thus,  with  each  hour,  the  number  indicated  was 
lesser  by  one  than  the  previous  number.  The 
Sultan  observed  the  gloom  of  his  favorite,  and  to 
drive  away  her  sad  thoughts,  compelled  her  to  re- 
tire to  her  bedchamber,  where  she  enjoyed  two 
hours  of  sweet  repose,  leaning  on  the  Sultan's 
breast ;  whereupon  the  Sultan  arose  and  went  into 
his  dressing-room,  for  he  had  to  hold  a  divan,  or 
council. 

The  first  thing  the  favorite  did  on  awaking  was 
to  look  at  the  time,  and  she  perceived  that  it  was 
now  seven  o'clock.  She  immediately  hastened  to 
interrogate  the  pen,  and  asked  the  question  of  it 
with  fear  and  trembling ;  and  now  the  pen  wrote 
down  the  number  "  4." 

The  Sultan  himself  sent  for  Morrison. 

The  English  sailor  was  proudly  conscious  of  own- 
ing no  master  but  the  sea.  During  his  long  roam- 
ings  in  the  East  and  South  he  had  always  made  it  a 
point  of  visiting  all  the  barbarous  chiefs  and  princes 
who  came  in  his  way.  He  regarded  them  simply  as 
freaks  of  nature,  whose  absurd  rites  and  customs  he 
meant  to  thoroughly  investigate  in  order  that  he 
might  make  a  note  of  them  in  his  diary,  and  he  even 
went  the  length  of  adopting  for  a  time  their  man- 
ners and  customs,  if  he  could  not  get  what  he  wanted 
in  any  other  way. 

A  summons  to  appear  before  the  divan  was  scarce- 
ly of  more  importance  in  his  eyes  than  an  invitation 
to  a  wild  elephant  hunt,  or  initiation  into  the  mys- 
teries of  Mumbo  Jumbo,  or  an  ascent  in  the  perilous 
aerial  ship  of  Montgolfier.  He  donned  a  dark-blue- 
colored  garment  and  a  plumed  three-cornered  hat, 


120  THE    LION    OF  JANINA 

and  condescended  to  allow  himself  to  be  conducted 
by  the  ichoglanler  specially  told  off  to  do  him  honor 
to  the  splendid  canopied,  six-oared  pinnace,  which 
was  to  take  him  to  the  palace. 

They  escorted  him  first  to  the  Gate  of  Fountains, 
and  left  him  waiting  for  a  few  moments  in  the 
Chamber  of  Lions,  allowing  him  in  the  meanwhile 
to  draw  a  pocket-book  from  his  breast-pocket  and 
make  a  rapid  sketch  of  all  the  objects  around  him. 
They  then  relieved  him  of  his  short  sword,  as  none 
may  approach  the  Sultan  with  arms,  and  threw 
across  his  shoulders  an  ample  caftan  trimmed  with 
ermine.  He  did  not  reflect  for  the  moment  what 
a  distinction  this  was.  His  only  feeling  was  a 
slight  surprise  that  he  should  be  dressed  in  gree*n 
down  to  his  very  heels,  as,  with  the  dragoman  on 
his  left  hand,  he  was  conducted  into  the  Hall  of  the 
Seven  Viziers,  where  the  Sultan  sat  in  the  midst  of 
his  grandees. 

Morrison  greeted  the  Padishah  very  handsomely, 
just  as  he  would  have  greeted  King  George  IV.  or 
King  Charles  X.,  perhaps. 

"Bow  to  the  ground — right  down  to  the  ground, 
milord  !"  whispered  the  dragoman  in  his  ears. 

"I'll  be  damned  if  I  do  !"  replied  Morrison.  "It 
is  not  my  habit  to  go  down  on  my  knees  in  uni- 
form !" 

"  But  that  was  why  they  put  the  caftan  on  you," 
whispered  the  dragoman,  half  in  joke.  "  'Tis  the 
custom  here." 

"  And  a  deuced  bad  custom,  too,"  growled  Morri- 
son ;  and,  after  reflecting  for  a  moment  or  two,  he 
hit  upon  the  idea  of  letting  his  hat  fall  to  the 
ground,  and  then  bent  down  as  if  to  pick  it  up 


THE    PEN    OF    MAHMOUD  121 

again.  But,  by  way  of  compensation,  immediately 
after  righting  himself  he  stood  as  stiff  and  straight 
as  if  he  were  determined  never  to  bend  his  head 
again,  though  the  roof  were  to  fall  upon  him  in 
consequence. 

The  Sultan  addressed  a  couple  of  brief  words  to 
the  sailor,  metamorphosed  by  the  dragoman  into  a 
floridly  adulatory  rigmarole,  which  he  represented 
to  be  a  faithful  version  of  the  Sultan's  ineffable  salu- 
tation. In  effect  he  told  the  sailor  that  he  was  a 
terrible  hippopotamus,  an  oceanic  elephant,  who 
had  ground  to  death  countless  crocodiles  with  his 
glorious  grinders,  trampled  them  to  pieces  with  his 
mighty  hoofs,  and  torn  them  limb  from  limb  with 
his  trunk,  and  had  therefore  merited  that  the  sub- 
lime Sultan  should  cover  him  with  the  wings  of  his 
mantle.  Let  him,  therefore,  ask  as  a  reward  what- 
ever he  chose,  even  to  the  half  of  the  Padishah's 
kingdom.  I  may  add  that  if  any  one  had  in  those 
days  actually  asked  for  half  of  the  Sultan's  kingdom, 
he  would  probably  have  got  that  part  of  it  which 
lies  underground. 

Morrison  thanked  the  Sultan  for  his  liberal  offer, 
and  asked  that  he  might  see  the  favorite  wife  of  the 
Grand  Signior. 

At  these  words  the  dragoman  turned  pale,  but  the 
Sultan  turned  still  paler.  The  convulsive  twitch- 
ing of  the  muscles  of  his  face  betrayed  his  strong 
revulsion  of  feeling,  and,  lowering  his  heavy,  shaggy 
eyebrows,  he  dashed  at  the  sailor  a  look  of  dead- 
ly rage,  while  a  heavy  sigh  escaped  from  his  deep 
chest. 

The  Englishman  only  regretted  that  he  could  not 
acquit  himself  as  creditably  in  this  play  of  eyebrows. 


122  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

His  own  were  small,  of  a  bright  blonde  color,  and 
somewhat  pointed. 

The  dragoman,  however,  could  read  an  ominous 
meaning  in  this  deep  silence. 

"O  glorious  giaour,  rosebud  of  thy  nation!" 
whispered  he,  "  fleet  water-spider  of  the  ocean,  ask 
not  so  senseless  a  thing  from  the  Grand  Signior  ! 
Behold  his  wrathful  eyes,  and  ask  for  something 
else  ;  ask  for  his  most  precious  treasure  ;  ask  for  all 
his  damsels,  if  thou  wilt,  but  ask  not  to  see  the  face 
of  his  favorite.  Thou  knowest  not  the  meaning 
thereof." 

Morrison  shrugged  his  shoulders.  "  I  want  neither 
his  treasure  nor  his  damsels.  I  only  want  to  see  his 
favorite  wife." 

Mahmoud  trembled,  but  not  a  word  did  he  speak. 
Two  tear-drops  twinkled  in  his  dark  eyes  and  ran 
down  his  handsome,  manly  face. 

At  this  the  Viziers  leaped  to  their  feet,  and  it  was 
evident  from  their  agitated  cries  that  they  expected 
the  Sultan  to  order  the  presumptuous  infidel  to  be 
cut  down  there  and  then. 

The  dragoman,  in  despair,  flung  himself  at  the 
seaman's  feet. 

"  O  prince  of  all  whales  !"  he  cried.  "  O  unbeliev- 
ing dog  !  Thou  seest  me,  a  true  believer,  lying  at 
thy  feet,  O  wine-drinking  giaour  !  Why  wilt  thou 
entangle  me  with  the  words  which  the  Sultan  said 
to  thee  through  me  ?  Art  thou  not  ashamed  to 
place  thy  foot  on  the  neck  of  the  lord  of  princes? 
Ask  some  other  thing  !" 

In  vain.  The  sailor  changed  not  a  muscle  of  his 
face.  He  simply  repeated,  with  imperturbable  sang- 
froid, the  words : 


THE    PEN    OF    MAHMOUD  123 

"I  want  to  see  his  favorite  wife." 

The  Viziers  rushed  at  him  with  a  howl  of  fury, 
but  Morrison  merely  threw  back  the  caftan  which 
had  been  folded  across  his  breast,  revealing  his 
dreaded  uniform  and  the  decorations  appended 
thereto  —  memorials  of  his  services  at  Alexandria 
and  Trafalgar.  That,  he  thought,  would  quite  suf- 
fice to  preserve  him  from  any  violence. 

But  the  Sultan  leaped  down  from  his  throne,  beck- 
oned with  his  hand  to  the  Viziers,  and  whispered 
some  words  in  the  ear  of  the  Kislar  -  Agasi,  who 
thereupon  withdrew.  This  whispered  word  went 
the  round  of  the  Viziers,  who  straightway  did  obei- 
sance and  disappeared  in  three  different  directions 
through  the  three  doors  of  the  room,  their  places  be- 
ing taken  by  two  black  slaves  in  red  fezes  and  white 
robes,  with  broad-bladed,  crooked  swords  in  their 
hands.  Only  the  Sultan  remained  behind  there  with 
the  sailor. 

The  clocks  in  the  rooms  of  the  Seraglio  struck  a 
quarter  to  ten.  The  pen  of  the  dervish  in  reply  to 
the  question  of  the  favorite  as  to  how  many  hours 
she  had  to  live  now  wrote  down  "  £." 

At  that  moment  the  Kislar-Agasi  entered.  The 
favorite  went  to  meet  him,  trembling  like  a  lost  lamb 
coming  face  to  face  with  a  wolf. 

The  Kislar-Agasi  bowed  deeply,  and  beckoned  to 
the  serving- women  of  the  Seraglio  standing  behind 
him  to  come  forward. 

"  Has  the  Sultana  accomplished  the  prescribed  ab- 
lutions ?"  said  he. 

"Yes,  my  lord!" 

"  Gird  her  round  the  body  with  a  triple  row  of 


124  THE   LION   OP   JANINA 

pearls ;  fasten  on  her  turban  the  bird  of  paradise 
with  the  diamond  clasp.  Put  on  her  gold  embroid- 
ered caftan." 

The  favorite  let  them  do  what  they  would  with 
her  without  saying  a  word. 

The  waiting-woman,  covering  the  favorite's  face 
with  a  light  fan,  thickly  sewn  with  tiny  gold  stars, 
conducted  her  to  the  door  which  led  to  the  Procelain 
Chamber,  and  there  the  Kislar-Agasi  left  her,  after 
indicating  whither  they  had  to  go  next. 

Guards  stood  in  couples  before  each  one  of  the 
doors  ;  the  last  door  they  came  to  was  only  protect- 
ed by  a  curtain.  This  was  the  door  of  the  cupola 
chamber  where  the  Sultan  had  received  the  sailor. 

The  favorite  could  not  see  the  sailor  because  of 
the  lofty  projecting  wings  of  the  throne  ;  she  only 
saw  the  Sultan  sitting  on  a  divan.  She  hastened  up 
to  him,  and  when  she  stood  before  him  she  suddenly 
caught  sight  of  the  stranger  regarding  her  with  cold- 
ly curious  eyes.  Shrinking  away  with  terror,  she 
screamed  out "  Giaour  !"  and,  wrapping  her  veil  more 
closely  around  her,  turned  to  the  Sultan  for  pro- 
tection. Then  Mahmoud  seized  the  damsel's  trem- 
bling hand  with  one  of  his,  and  with  the  other  raised 
the  veil  from  the  face  of  his  dearest  wife  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  stranger. 

The  girl  shrieked  as  if  her  face  had  been  bitten  by 
a  serpent ;  then  she  fell  at  the  knees  of  the  Sultan, 
and  looked  at  the  face  of  the  Grand  Signior  with  an 
appealing  glance  for  mercy.  In  the  eyes  of  the  ca- 
liph of  caliphs  the  moisture  of  human  compassion 
sparkled.  Poor  Sultana  !  who  would  not  have  pit- 
ied her? 

Morrison  made  a  courtly  bow,  and  the  dragoman 


THE   PEN   OF    MAHMOUD  125 

not  being  present,  he  expressed  his  thanks  by  us- 
ing the  well-known  Turkish  salutation,  "  Salam  ala- 
kiim  !"  The  extraordinary  charms  of  the  damsel 
made  no  more  impression  upon  him  than  the  sight 
of  any  ordinarily  pretty  lady  at  a  court  presentation 
at  home  would  have  done. 

The  damsel  meanwhile  writhed  in  torments  at  the 
feet  of  the  Sultan,  who,  having  had  enough  of  it 
himself,  covered  her  with  her  veil,  and  beckoned  to 
the  Kislar-Agasi.  He  raised  the  damsel,  and  carried 
her  behind  the  curtains  that  surrounded  the  throne  ; 
the  same  instant  the  two  eunuch  guards  standing 
beside  the  throne  also  disappeared. 

The  Sultan  listened  and  covered  his  eyes. 

After  a  few  moments  of  deep  silence,  it  seemed  to 
the  sailor  as  if  he  heard  a  long  sigh  behind  the  cur- 
tains. The  Sultan  shivered  in  every  limb,  and  im- 
mediately afterwards  the  clocks  in  the  Seraglio  be- 
gan to  strike  ;  they  struck  eleven. 

Then  the  Sultan  arose  from  his  place  and  said, 
with  a  deep  sigh  : 

"  'Twas  the  will  of  Allah  !"  Then  he  descended 
from  the  divan  and  said  to  Morrison  in  the  purest 
Italian,  "Thou  didst  see  her;  was  she  not  beau- 
tiful ?." 

Morrison,  astonished  to  hear  Italian  spoken  by 
the  Sultan,  who,  as  a  rule,  never  spoke  a  word  save 
through  an  interpreter,  in  his  amazement  could  not 
find  an  answer  to  this  question  quick  enough. 

"  Come  now  and  see  her  once  more,"  continued 
the  Grand  Signior,  and  with  these  words  he  went 
towards  the  curtains. 

Morrison  fell  back  confounded.  The  rosy-red 
damsel  of  a  few  moments  before  lay  there  pale,  life- 


126  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

less,  at  full  length,  her  lips  and  eyes  closed,  her  bos- 
om motionless.  A  thin  red  line  was  visible  round 
her  beautiful  white  neck — the  mark  of  the  silken 
cord  ! 

"But  this  is  brutal !"  exclaimed  the  sailor,  beside 
himself  with  indignation. 

The  Sultan  coldly  replied,  "  Whenever  a  Christian 
man  beholds  the  face  of  one  of  our  women,  that  wom- 
an must  die."  He  then  signified  to  the  sailor  that 
he  was  dismissed. 

Morrison  hastened  from  the  room,  immediately 
hoisted  his  anchor,  and  the  same  night  sailed  out  of 
the  Golden  Horn,  everywhere  pursued  by  the  mem- 
ory of  the  beautiful  Sultana,  whom  he  had  killed 
with  a  glance  of  his  eyes. 

"  Behold,  behold  !"  cried  the  Sultan,  pressing  the 
cold,  murdered  limbs  to  his  bosom  ;  "  the  dzhin  told 
the  truth.  Mahmoud  loved  thee  to  the  death,  and 
yet  Mahmoud  slew  thee  !" 

These  words  he  repeated  two  or  three  times  to 
the  dead  woman,  and  then,  descending  the  steps  of 
the  throne,  rent  his  garments  across  his  breast,  and 
looking  up  to  heaven  with  tearful  eyes,  exclaimed  : 

"  And  now  let  the  rest  come  too !" 

And  the  rest  did  come.  It  came  from  the  east 
and  from  the  west,  from  the  north  and  from  the 
south  —  four  empire  -  subverting  tempests,  which 
shook  the  strong  trunk  of  Osman  to  its  very  roots, 
and  scattered  its  leaves  afar. 

Ali  Pasha  of  Janina  was  the  first  to  kindle  the 
blood-red  flames  of  war  in  the  west,  and  soon  they 
spread  from  the  Morea  to  Smyrna.  In  the  north 
the  crusading  banners  of  Yprilanti  raised  up  a 


THE    PEN   OF    MAHMOUD  127 

fresh  foe  against  Mahmoud,  and  the  cries  of  "  the 
sacred  army  "  re-echoed  from  the  walls  of  Athens 
and  the  banks  of  the  Danube  and  the  summits  of 
Olympus.  In  Stambul  the  unbridled  hosts  of  the 
Janissaries  shed  torrents  of  blood  among  the  Greeks 
of  the  city  on  the  tidings  of  every  defeat  from  out- 
side. And  when  the  peril  from  every  quarter  had 
reached  its  height,  the  Shah  of  Persia  fell  upon  the 
crumbling  realm  from  the  east,  and  captured  the 
rich  city  of  Bagdad. 

And  still  Mahmoud  had  the  desire  to  live  —  to 
live  and  rule.  A  pettier  spirit  would  have  fled  from 
the  Imperial  palace  and  taken  refuge  among  the 
palm-trees  of  Arabia  Felix  when  it  recognized  that 
an  endless  war  encompassed  it  on  every  side,  that 
to  conquer  was  impossible,  and  that  the  nearest 
enemy  was  the  most  dangerous.  A  mine  of  gun- 
powder had  been  dug  beneath  the  throne,  and 
around  the  throne  a  mob  of  madmen  were  hurry- 
ing aimlessly  to  and  fro  with  lighted  torches.  And 
yet  it  was  Mahmoud's  pleasure  to  remain  sitting 
on  that  throne. 

Frequently  he  would  steal  furtively  at  night  from 
his  harem.  Alone,  unattended,  he  would  contem- 
plate the  flight  of  the  stars  from  the  roof  of  the  Se- 
raglio, and  would  listen  to  the  nocturnal  massacres 
and  the  shrieks  of  the  dying  in  the  streets  of  Stam- 
bul. He  would  watch  how  the  conflagrations  burn- 
ed forth  in  two  or  three  places  at  once,  both  in 
Pera  and  Galata  their  lordships  the  Janissaries 
were  working  their  will.  And  he  felt  that  cruelly 
cold  piercing  wind  which  began  to  blow  from  the 
north,  so  that  in  the  rooms  of  the  Seraglio  the 
shivering  odalisks  began  to  draw  rugs  and  other 


128  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

warm  coverings  over  their  tender  limbs.  Never 
had  any  one  in  Stambul  felt  that  cold  wind  before. 
Whence  came  it,  and  what  did  it  signify  ? 

Mahmoud  knew  whence  it  came  and  what  it 
signified,  and  he  had  the  courage  to  look  steadily 
in  the  face  of  the  future,  in  which  he  discerned  not 
a  single  ray  of  hope. 


CHAPTER   IX 
THE   CIRCASSIAN   AND   HIS   FAMILY 

IN  those  days  Kasi  Mollah  did  not  go  by  the 
name  of  Murstud — i.e.,  a  pillar  of  the  faith.  He  was 
a  simple  sheik  at  Himri,  in  the  northern  part  of  the 
land  of  Circassia,  a  remote  little  place,  where  the 
Muscovite  was  no  more  than  a  rumor  from  afar. 

Nature  herself  had  fashioned  a  strong  fortress 
around  Himri.  Immense  mountain-chains  enclosed 
it  within  massive  walls  on  both  sides,  rising  bleak, 
interminable,  and  ever  upwards  into  the  dim  dis- 
tance. 

In  the  midst  of  this  valley  of  eternal  shadows 
arose  a  third  rocky  mass,  forming  —  on  both  sides 
— a  steep,  ladder-like  wall ;  and,  after  extending  far 
among  the  other  mountains,  terminating  in  a  rag- 
ged-looking, concave  hill,  defended  by  the  junction 
of  the  impetuous  mountain  streams,  which  dug  a 
deep  hollow  among  the  excavated  rocks.  Along 
this  channel,  running  like  a  spinal  cord  throughout 
the  backbone  of  the  mountain,  extended  some  few 
thousands  of  acres  of  luxuriant  corn  —  a  long  but 
narrow  strip. 

At  the  head  of  an  opening  in  the  chain  a  rocky 
scaffolding  was  visible,  about  one  hundred  feet  in 
height,  as  regularly  disposed  as  if  a  number  of  gi- 
gantic dice  had  been  designedly  placed  there  one  on 
9 


130  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

the  top  of  another.  By  a  marvellous  freak  of  Nat- 
ure, this  rocky  conglomeration  was  provided  ap- 
parently with  towers,  bastions,  and  buttresses  ;  so 
that,  viewed  from  afar,  it  looked  like  a  gigantic 
fortress,  and,  on  the  very  first  glance  at  it,  the 
thought  involuntarily  occurs  to  one  that  if  but 
four  guns  were  planted  on  those  summits  a  few 
hundred  men  might  defend  themselves  against  an 
army-corps.  At  the  rear  of  the  hill,  morever,  where 
the  cataracts  make  any  approach  impossible,  the 
flocks  and  herds  of  the  defending  army  could  go  on 
contentedly  browsing  for  years  together. 

A  foolish  idea  !  To  whom  would  it  ever  occur 
to  attack  Himri,  that  tiny  Circassian  village  with 
scarcely  five  hundred  inhabitants,  who  have  nothing 
in  the  world  but  their  kine,  their  goats,  and  their 
pretty  girls  ?  Who  would  ever  come  against  Himri 
with  guns  and  an  army — against  those  most  worthy 
men  who  all  their  life  long  have  never  done  any- 
thing but  make  cheese  and  tan  hides,  who  only  ex- 
ercise their  valor  against  the  devastating  bands  of 
bears,  and  only  extirpate  with  their  long,  far-reach- 
ing muskets  the  wild  goats  of  the  rocks  ? 

They  do  not  even  build  their  houses  on  the  sum- 
mit of  this  wondrous  fortress  of  Nature,  but  among 
the  rocks  below,  constructing  them  prettily  of  reg- 
ularly disposed  logs,  with  roofs  like  dove-cots,  sur- 
rounding them  with  linden -trees  and  flower-gar- 
dens. And  so  far  from  keeping  a  visitor  at  bay 
with  cannon-shots,  they  go  forth  to  meet  him,  con- 
duct him  into  their  villages,  hospitably  entertain 
him,  insist  on  his  tarrying  long  with  them  ;  and  if 
the  visitor  be  a  handsome  young  fellow,  the  love- 
liest eyes  that  ever  smiled  and  wept  grow  moist  at 


THE    CIRCASSIAN  AND   HIS   FAMILY  131 

his  departure.  Who  amongst  those  who  have  been 
lulled  to  sleep  in  Himri  by  the  songs  of  the  lovely 
and  bewitching  Circassian  girls  could  ever  have 
dreamed  that  the  time  would  come  when  these 
mountain  walls  all  round  about  would  be  dyed 
red  with  the  blood  of  thousands  and  thousands  of 
strangers,  who  came  thither  to  seek  death,  and 
found  what  they  sought  ? 

The  house  of  the  meritorious  sheik  differed  in  no 
respect  from  the  dwellings  of  the  other  inhabitants. 
It  also  was  entirely  built  of  timber,  consisted  of 
four  rooms  leading  one  out  of  another,  and  two 
venerable  nut-trees  stood  in  front  of  it. 

Kasi  Mollah  sits  outside,  leaning  tranquilly 
against  the  door-post  beneath  the  projecting  eaves, 
both  sides  of  which  are  covered  by  large  scarlet- 
runners,  plaiting  with  great  care  and  solemnity  a 
whip  out  of  twelve  fine  thongs  of  kid-skin  hanging 
on  a  crooked  nail. 

Squatting  on  the  ground  beside  him  on  a  bear- 
skin sits  a  peculiar-looking  stranger.  Even  if  you 
had  not  seen  it  in  his  features  and  clothing,  his 
mules  standing  before  the  door  would  have  told  you 
that  he  did  not  belong  to  these  parts.  He  was,  in- 
deed, a  Greek  merchant  from  Smyrna,  who  visited 
Circassia  every  year  to  purchase  kid-skins — or,  so 
he  said.  He  had  three  palaces  in  Smyrna ;  but  it  is 
scarcely  credible  that  he  could  have  acquired  them 
by  his  kid-skins  only.  At  any  rate,  his  mules  were 
laden  now  with  whole  bundles  of  furs  and  pelts,  and 
the  merchant  was  toasting  his  host  in  a  sour  bever- 
age, made  by  the  Circassian  from  horse's  milk,  the 
evil  odor  of  which  he  was  striving  to  dispel  with 
the  smoke  of  good  Latakia  tobacco. 


132  THE    LION    OF    JANINA 

It  was  for  him  also  that  the  Circassian  was  mak- 
ing that  long  mule-driving  whip  of  thongs  of  twelve 
different  colors,  serpentine  in  shape,  and  plaited  at 
the  ends  with  beautiful  white  horse-hair  ;  and  when 
it  was  ready  he  smacked  it  so  vigorously,  by  way  of 
showing  it  off,  that  the  merchant  could  scarce  save 
his  eyes  from  it. 

"  A  pretty  whip,  and  a  good  whip,"  he  said,  at 
last,  in  order  that  its  owner  might  leave  off  crack- 
ing it. 

"I'll  very  soon  prove  whether  it  is  a  good  whip 
or  not,"  said  the  Circassian,  without  moving  a  mus- 
cle of  his  brown,  oval-shaped,  apathetic  face  ;  and 
with  that  he  began  to  make  the  handle  of  the  whip 
out  of  fine  copper  wire  of  a  fantastically  ornate 
pattern  nicely  studded  with  leaden  stars. 

"  How  will  you  prove  that  it  is  a  good  whip  ?" 
asked  the  merchant. 

"  Stop  till  my  children  come  home." 

"  Your  children  ?" 

"  Yes,  naturally.  I  should  not  think  of  proving 
it  on  other  people's  children." 

"  You  are  surely  not  going  to  prove  the  whip  on 
your  own?" 

"On  whom  else,  then?  Children  should  be  whip- 
ped in  order  that  they  may  be  good, that  they  may  be 
kept  in  order,  and  that  they  may  not  get  nonsense 
into  their  heads.  'Tis  also  a  good  thing  to  train  them 
betimes  to  endure  greater  sorrow  by  giving  them 
a  foretaste  of  lesser  ones,  so  that  when  they  grow 
up  to  man's  estate,  and  real  misfortune  overtakes 
them,  they  may  be  able  to  bear  it.  My  father  used 
always  to  beat  me,  and  now  I  bless  him  for  it,  for  it 
made  a  man  of  me.  Children  are  always  full  of  evil 


THE    CIRCASSIAN   AND   HIS   FAMILY  133 

dispositions,  and  you  do  well  to  drive  such  things 
out  of  them  with  the  whip." 

A  peculiar  smile  passed  across  the  long,  olive- 
colored  face  of  the  Greek  at  these  words  ;  he  seemed 
to  be  only  smiling  to  himself.  Then  he  fixed  his 
sly,  coal-black  eyes  on  the  sheik,  and  inquired,  scep- 
tically : 

"  But  surely  you  don't  beat  your  children  without 
cause  ?" 

"  Oh,  there's  always  cause.  Children  are  always 
doing  something  wrong ;  you  have  only  to  keep  an 
eye  on  them  to  see  that,  and  whoever  neglects  to 
punish  them  acts  like  him  who  should  forbear  to 
pull  up  the  weeds  in  his  garden." 

"  Kasi  Mollah,"  said  the  Greek,  puffing  two  long 
clouds  of  smoke  through  his  nostrils,  "  I  tell  you, 
children  are  not  your  speciality,  for  you  do  not  un- 
derstand how  to  bring  them  up.  In  the  whole  land 
of  Circassia  there  is  none  who  knows  how  to  bring 
up  children." 

"  Then  how  comes  it  that  our  girls  are  the  fairest 
and  our  youths  the  bravest  on  the  face  of  the  earth  ?" 

"Your  girls  would  be  still  more  beautiful  and 
your  lads  still  more  valiant  if  you  brought  them  up 
in  the  land  where  dwell  the  descendants  of  white- 
bosomed  Briseis  and  quick -footed  Achilles.  O 
Hellas !" 

The  Greek  began  to  grow  rapturous  at  the  pro- 
nunciation of  these  classical  names,  and  in  his  excite- 
ment blew  sufficient  smoke  out  of  his  chibook  to 
have  clouded  all  Olympus. 

"  I  tell  you,  Kasi  Mollah,"  continued  he,  "  that  chil- 
dren are  the  gifts  of  God,  and  he  who  beats  a  child 
lifts  his  whip,  so  to  speak,  against  God  Himself,  for 


134  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

His  hands  defend  their  little  bodies.  You  do  but 
sin  against  your  children.  Give  them  to  me  !" 

"  You  are  a  Christian  ;  I  am  a  Mussulman.  How, 
then,  shall  you  bring  up  my  children  ?" 

"  Fear  nothing.  I  do  not  want  to  keep  them  for 
myself  ;  I  mean  rather  to  get  them  such  positions  as 
will  enable  them  to  rise  to  the  utmost  distinction. 
I  would  place  them  with  some  leading  pasha,  per- 
haps with  the  Padishah  himself,  or,  at  any  rate,  with 
one  of  his  Viziers,  all  of  whom  have  a  great  respect 
for  Circassians." 

"Thank  you,  Midas,  thank  you  ;  but  I  don't  mean 
to  give  them  up." 

"  Prithee,  prithee,  call  me  not  Midas ;  that  is  an 
ominous  name  which  I  do  not  understand.  You 
might  have  learned  any  time  these  ten  years, 
when  I  first  came  to  buy  pelts  from  you,  that  my 
name  is  Leonidas  Argyrocantharides,  and  that  I 
am  a  direct  descendant  of  the  hero  Leonidas,  who 
fell  at  Thermopylae  with  his  three  hundred  valiant 
Spartans.  One  of  my  great-great-grandfathers,more- 
over,  fell  at  Issus,  by  the  side  of  the  great  Alex- 
ander, from  a  mortal  blow  dealt  to  him  by  a  Persian 
satrap.  If  you  do  not  believe  me,  look  at  this  an- 
cient coin,  and  at  these  others,  and  at  this  whole 
handful  which  are  in  my  purse,  all  of  which  were 
struck  under  Philip  of  Macedon,  or  else  under  Mi- 
chel Kantakuzenos  or  Constantine  Porphyroge- 
nitus,  all  of  whom  were  powerful  Greek  emperors  in 
Constantinople,  which  now  they  call  Stambul,  and 
built  the  church  of  St.  Sophia,  where  now  the  der- 
vishes say  their  prayers  ;  and  then  look  at  the  fig- 
ures which  are  stamped  on  these  coins,  and  tell  me 
if  they  do  not  resemble  me  to  a  hair.  It  is  so.  No, 


THE    CIRCASSIAN    AND    HIS    FAMILY  135 

you  need  not  give  me  back  the  money ;  give  me 
rather  the  two  little  children." 

The  Circassian,  who  had  taken  the  purse  with  the 
simple  intention  of  comparing  the  figures  on  the 
coins  with  the  face  of  the  merchant,  drew  the  strings 
of  the  purse  tight  again  at  this  offer,  and  thrust  it 
back  into  the  merchant's  bosom. 

"  Thank  you,"  said  he,  dryly.  "  I  deal  in  the 
skins  of  goats,  not  in  the  skins  of  men." 

The  face  of  the  merchant  showed  surprise  in  all 
its  features.  Not  every  man  possesses  the  art  of 
controlling  his  countenance  so  quickly,  especially 
when  his  self-command  is  put  to  so  sudden  and 
severe  a  test.  The  Georgians,  more  to  the  south, 
were  a  much  more  manageable  race  of  men.  With 
them  one  could  readily  drive  a  bargain  for  their 
daughters  and  give  them  a  good  big  sum  on  account 
for  their  smallest  children.  One  could  purchase  of 
them  children  from  two  to  three  years  of  age  at 
from  ten  to  twenty  golden  denarii  a  head,  and  sell 
them  in  ten  years'  time  for  just  as  many  thousands 
of  piastres  to  some  illustrious  pasha.  This  was 
how  Leonidas  was  able  to  build  himself  palaces  at 
Smyrna. 

"  You  talk  nonsense,  my  worthy  Chorbadzhi," 
said  the  merchant,  when  he  had  somewhat  recover- 
ed himself.  "  Shall  I  prove  it  to  you?  Well,  then,  in 
the  first  place,  you  do  not  sell  your  children,  and, 
in  the  second  place,  why  shouldn't  you  sell  them  ? 
If  a  Circassian  wrapped  in  a  bear-skin  comes  to  you 
and  asks  you  for  your  daughter,  would  you  not 
give  her  to  him?  And  at  the  very  outside  he  would 
only  give  you  a  dozen  cows  for  her,  and  as  many 
asses.  I,  on  the  other  hand,  offer  you  a  thousand 


136  THE   LION    OF   JANINA 

piastres  for  them  from  good,  worthy,  influential 
beys,  or  perhaps  from  the  Sultan  himself,  and  yet 
you  haggle  about  it." 

The  sheik's  face  began  to  show  wrath  and  irrita- 
tion. He  was  well  aware  that  the  merchant  was 
now  dealing  in  sophisms,  though  his  simple  intellect 
could  not  quite  get  at  the  root  of  their  fallacy.  It 
was  plain  that  there  was  a  great  difference  between 
a  Circassian  dressed  in  bear-skin,  who  carries  off  a 
girl  in  exchange  for  a  dozen  cows,  and  the  Captain- 
General  of  Rumelia,  who  is  ready  to  give  a  thousand 
ducats  for  her — and  yet  he  preferred  the  gentleman 
in  bear-skins. 

The  Greek,  meanwhile,  appeared  to  be  studying 
the  features  of  the  Circassian  with  an  attentive  eye, 
watching  what  impression  his  words  had  produced, 
like  the  experimenting  doctor  who  tries  the  effects 
of  his  medicaments  in  anima  vili. 

"  But  I  know  that  you  will  give  them,  Kasi 
Mollah,"  he  resumed,  filling  up  his  chibook.  "No 
doubt  you  have  promised  them  to  another  trader. 
Well,  well !  you  are  a  cunning  rogue.  Merchants 
of  Dirbend  or  Bagdad  have  no  doubt  offered  you 
more  for  them.  They  can  afford  it,  they  do  such 
a  roaring  business.  Those  perfidious  Armenians .' 
They  buy  the  children  for  a  mere  song,  and  sell 
them  when  they  are  eight  or  nine  years  old  to  the 
pashas,  so  that  not  one  of  them  lives  to  see  his 
twentieth  year,  but  all  die  miserably  in  the  mean 
time.  I  don't  do  such  things.  I  am  an  honest  man, 
with  whom  business  is  but  a  labor  of  love,  and  who 
is  just  to  all  men.  It  is  sufficient  for  me  to  say  that 
I  was  born  where  Aristides  used  to  live.  Numbers 
and  numbers  of  my  ancestors  were  in  the  Areopagus, 


THE    CIRCASSIAN   AND   HIS   FAMILY  137 

and  one  of  my  great-great-uncles  was  an  archon. 
Do  not  imagine,  therefore,  that  I  would  do  for  every 
foolish  fellow  what  I  offer  to  do  for  you.  I  only 
do  kindnesses  to  my  chosen  friends ;  the  ties  of 
friendship  are  sacred  to  me.  Castor  and  Pollux, 
Theseus  and  Pirithous  are  to  me  majestic  examples 
of  that  excellent  brotherhood  of  kindred  spirits 
which  I  constantly  set  before  me.  Wherever  I 
have  gone  people  have  always  blessed  me  ;  nay, 
did  I  but  let  them,  they  would  kiss  my  feet.  The 
daughter  of  a  Georgian  peasant  whose  father  trusted 
me  is  now  the  first  waiting-woman  of  the  wife  of 
the  Governor  of  Egypt.  Is  that  glory  enough  for 
you !  The  daughter  of  a  poor  goatherd,  whom  I 
picked  up  from  the  mire,  is  now  the  premier  pipe- 
filler  of  the  Pasha  of  Salonica.  A  high  office  that, 
if  you  like  !  What  Ganymede  was  to  Jove  in  those 
classical  ages —  Ah  !  the  tears  gush  from  my  eyes 
at  the  sound  of  that  word.  O  Hellas  !" 

The  Circassian  allowed  his  good  friend  to  weep 
on,  considering  it  a  sufficient  answer  to  let  his 
dark  bushy  eyebrows  frown  still  more  fiercely,  if 
possible,  over  his  downcast  eyes.  Then  he  caught 
up  a  hammer  and  hammered  away  with  great  fury 
at  the  handle  he  had  prepared  for  the  whip,  riveting 
the  wire  with  copper  studs. 

"  Kasi  Mollah,  hitherto  I  have  only  been  joking, 
but  now  I  am  going  to  speak  in  earnest,"  resumed 
Leonidas  Argyrocantharides,  raising  his  voice  that 
he  might  be  heard  through  the  hammering.  "You 
should  bethink  you  seriously  of  your  children's 
destiny.  I  am  your  old  friend,  your  old  acquaint- 
ance ;  my  sole  wish  is  for  your  welfare.  I  love 
your  children  as  much  as  if  they  were  my  own, 


138  THE    LION   OP  JANINA 

and  the  tears  gush  from  my  eyes  whenever  I  part 
from  them.  What  will  become  of  them  when  they 
grow  up  ?  I  know  that  while  you  are  alive  it 
will  be  well  with  them,  but  how  about  afterwards  ? 
You  may  die  to-morrow^  or  the  next  day ;  who  can 
tell?  We  are  all  in  the  hands  of  God.  Now  I'll 
tell  you  something.  Mind,  I'm  not  joking  or 
making  it  all  up.  I  know  for  certain  that  Topal 
Pasha  has  been  informed  that  you  have  two  lovely 
children.  Some  flighty  traders  of  Erzeroum  re- 
vealed the  fact  to  him.  They  are  wont  to  trade 
with  you  here,  and  he  has  paid  them  half  the 
stipulated  sum  down  on  condition  that  they  bring 
the  children  to  him.  Now  this  pasha  is  a  filthy, 
brutal,  rake-hell  sort  of  fellow,  the  pressure  of  whose 
foot  is  no  laughing  matter,  I  can  tell  you  ;  a  horrible, 
hideous,  cruel  man.  I  can  give  you  proofs  of  it. 
And  these  merchants  have  made  a  contract  with 
him,  and  have  engaged,  under  the  penalty  of  losing 
their  heads,  to  deliver  your  children  to  him  within 
a  twelvemonth.  What  do  you  say  ?  You'll  throw 
them  down  into  the  abyss,  eh  ?  Ah  !  they  are  not 
as  foolish  as  I  am.  They  will  not  openly  profess 
that  they  have  come  here  for  your  children,  as  I 
do,  but  they  will  lie  in  wait  for  them  when  they  go 
to  the  forest,  and  when  nobody  perceives  it  they 
will  clap  them  on  the  back  of  a  horse  and  off  they'll 
go  with  them,  so  that  nobody  will  know  under 
what  sky  to  look  for  them.  Or,  perhaps,  when  you 
yourself  are  going  along  the  road  with  them,  they'll 
lay  a  trap  for  you,  shoot  you  neatly  through  the 
head,  and  bolt  with  your  children.  Well,  that  will 
be  a  pretty  thing,  won't  it  ?  You  had  better  not 
throw  me  over." 


THE   CIRCASSIAN   AND    HIS   FAMILY  139 

The  Circassian  did  not  know  what  to  answer — 
words  were  precious  things  to  him — but  he  thought 
all  the  more.  While  the  merchant  was  speaking 
to  him,  his  reflections  carried  him  far.  He  saw 
his  children  in  the  detested  marble  halls,  he  saw 
them  standing  in  shamefully  gorgeous  garments, 
waiting  upon  the  smiling  despot,  who  stroked  their 
tender  faces  with  his  hands,  and  the  blood  rushed 
to  his  face  as  he  saw  his  children  blush  and  tremble 
beneath  that  smile.  Ah,  at  that  thought  he  began 
to  lash  about  him  so  vigorously  with  the  whip  that 
was  in  his  hand,  that  the  Greek  rolled  about  on 
the  bear-skin  in  terror,  holding  his  hands  to  his 
ears. 

"  Do  not  crack  that  whip  so  loudly,  my  dear  son," 
said  he,  "or  you'll  drive  away  all  my  mules.  I 
really  believe  your  whip  is  a  very  good  one,  but 
you  need  not  test  it  to  the  uttermost.  I  thank  you 
for  making  it ;  but  now,  pray,  put  it  down.  I  must 
go.  It  is  a  good  thing  you  have  not  knocked  out 
one  of  my  eyes.  You  certainly  have  a  vigorous 
way  of  enjoying  yourself.  But  let  us  speak  sensi- 
bly. Do  you  believe  that  I  am  an  honest  man,  or 
not?" 

At  this  the  Circassian  did  not  nod  his  head. 

"Very  well,  then.  It  is  natural  that  you  should 
believe,  you  ought  to  believe  it.  Since  Pausanias 
there  has  not  been  a  sharper  among  my  nation. 
He  was  the  last  faithless  Greek,  and  they  walled 
him  up  in  the  temple.  I  am  a  man  without  guile, 
as  you  are  well  aware.  But  I  am  more  than  that, 
more  than  you  suspect.  Oho  !  in  this  shabby, 
worn-out  caftan  of  mine  dwells  something  which 
you  do  not  dream  of.  Oho  !  I  know  what  I  really 


140  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

am.  I  am  on  friendly  terms  with  great  men,  with 
many  great  men,  standing  high  in  the  empire, 
whose  fame  has  never  reached  your  ears.  In  the 
palm  of  this  hand  I  hold  Hellas,  in  the  other  the 
realm  of  Osman.  I  shake  the  whole  world  when  I 
move.  Why  do  I  take  all  this  trouble  ?  Oh,  for  the 
sake  of  your  holy  shades,  Miltiades,  Themistocles, 
Lysippus,  and  Demosthenes  !  for  the  sake  of  your 
shades,  O  Solon,  O  Lycurgus,  O  Pythagoras,  and  a 
time  is  coming  in  which  I  will  prove  it !  It  is  thy 
memory,  Athene,  which  inspires  me  to  heap  up 
treasures  for  the  future  !  Thou,  O  holy  Goddess 
of  Liberty,  hath  whispered  in  my  ear  that  thou 
canst  make  use  of  the  lowly  as  well  as  of  the  mighty 
to  promote  thy  cause  !"  Here  the  merchant  leaped 
to  his  feet  in  his  enthusiasm,  and,  extending  his 
hand  towards  the  Circassian  exclaimed,  "  Kasi 
Mollah,  you  groan  beneath  the  yoke  just  as  much 
as  we  do  ;  let  us  join  hands  against  our  oppressors, 
and  let  us  gradually  melt  the  hearts  of  their  leaders 
by  the  strongest  of  fires,  by  the  fire  of  the  eyes  of 
the  Greek  and  Circassian  maidens,  and  we  shall 
catch  them  in  a  flowery  net !" 

Kasi  Mollah  did  not  clasp  the  hand  of  the  en- 
thusiastic Greek  ;  and,  without  turning  towards  him, 
replied,  coldly,  "  I  do  not  grudge  you  the  drink  which 
I  put  before  you,  worthy  merchant,  but  I  perceive 
that  it  has  begun  to  mount  into  your  head,  or  else 
you  would  not  talk  such  rubbish  as  selling  free  peo- 
ple to  your  enemies  from  motives  of  freedom.  Nor 
do  you  say  well  in  saying  that  we  are  under  the 
yoke,  for  that  is  not  true.  Nobody  has  ever  made 
the  Circassian  do  homage,  nor  would  any  try  to 
conquer  us  for  the  sake  of  the  eyes  of  our  poor 


THE    CIRCASSIAN   AND   HIS    FAMILY  14! 

damsels.  Say  no  more  about  my  children.  I  will 
not  give  them  up.  If  any  one  comes  to  visit  me, 
I'll  send  him  about  his  business  ;  if  any  one  tries 
to  deceive  me,  I'll  cudgel  him  ;  and  if  any  one  tries 
to  rob  me,  I'll  slay  him.  And  tell  that  to  the  mer- 
chants of  Erzeroum  also.  And  now  say  no  more 
about  it." 

At  these  words  the  face  of  the  merchant  grew 
very  long  indeed.  In  his  spite  he  began  pulling 
at  the  stem  of  his  chibook  with  such  force  that  his 
face  was  furrowed  right  down  the  middle,  and  his 
eyebrows  ascended  to  the  middle  of  his  forehead. 
From  time  to  time  he  kept  on  wagging  his  head, 
and  his  scarlet,  mortar  -  shaped  fez  along  with  it, 
and  burned  the  tips  of  his  fingers  by  absently 
poking  the  red-hot  bowl  of  his  pipe.  But  his  hir 
dignation  did  not  go  beyond  a  shaking  of  the  head, 
and  there  he  wisely  let  the  matter  rest. 

"Very  well,  Kasi  Mollah.  You  are  an  honest 
fellow.  We  shall  see — we  shall  see." 

The  sun  was  now  setting,  and  from  among  the 
hills  the  bells  of  the  home -returning  cattle  re- 
sounded across  the  level  plain  which  extended  in 
front  of  the  rocky  heights  of  Himri.  Fifteen  head 
of  snow-white  kine  strolled  leisurely  towards  the 
house  of  Kasi  Mollah,  passing  one  by  one  through 
the  gate  of  their  enclosure  ;  behind  the  last  of  them 
came  the  children  of  the  sheik,  who  guarded  the 
herd  in  the  forest. 

The  boy  appeared  to  be  about  twelve,  and  the 
girl  a  year  younger,  and  so  closely  did  they  resem- 
ble each  otlxer  that,  viewed  in  profile,  it  was  impos- 
sible to  distinguish  one  from  the  other.  Both  had 
the  same  long,  black  hair,  which  flowed  in  won- 


142  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

drous  ringlets  down  their  shoulders,  the  same  soft 
complexion  of  a  naive  maturity,  and  as  smooth  as 
velvet,  just  as  if  they  never  walked  in  the  sunlight, 
and  yet  they  had  no  head-coverings.  The  youth's 
face  revealed  so  much  girlish  tenderness,  and  the 
girl's  so  much  vigor  and  expression,  that  by  chang- 
ing their  clothes  it  would  have  been  possible  to 
substitute  one  for  the  other  ;  and,  but  for  the  well- 
known,  tight-fitting  corset,  peculiar  to  the  Circas- 
sian maidens,  which  caused  her  figure,  slender  as  a 
delicate  flower-stalk,  to  bend  somewhat  backwards, 
throwing  into  relief  the  contours  of  her  childlike 
breasts,  it  would  have  been  scarcely  possible  to 
have  distinguished  her  from  her  brother,  espe- 
cially when,  as  now,  they  walked  side  by  side,  half 
embracing.  The  snow-white  arm  of  the  girl  was 
round  her  brother's  neck,  and  her  humidly  glitter- 
ing black  eyes  seemed  to  be  sucking  the  virile  cour- 
age from  his  face  ;  the  boy  held  the  slim  figure  of 
his  sister  encircled  by  one  of  his  arms,  tapping  her, 
from  time  to  time,  caressingly  on  the  shoulder,  while 
his  eyes  rested,  full  of  tenderness,  on  her  beloved 
face. 

"What  a  majestic  pair  of  children!"  exclaimed 
Leonidas  Argyrocantharides,  in  his  enthusiasm. 
"What  a  shame  it  is  to  lock  them  up  in  this  corner 
of  the  world  !  But  what  the  deuce  is  the  lad  drag- 
ging along  with  his  left  hand  while  he  embraces  his 
sister  with  his  right  ?  What  is  it,  my  pretty  chil- 
dren ?  Nay,  don't  bring  it  here.  What  sort  of  un- 
clean animal  is  it  ?" 

The  lad,  with  a  triumphant  smile,  stood  before  the 
merchant  while  his  sister  ran  to  her  father,  climbed 
on  to  his  knees,  and  throwing  her  arms  shame- 


THE    CIRCASSIAN    AND    HIS    FAMILY  143 

facedly  round  his  neck  hid  her  face  from  the 
stranger. 

"  Do  you  not  recognize  the  bear-skin  ?"  cried  the 
youth,  in  a  strong,  clear  voice ;  and  as  he  spoke  you 
became  aware  of  the  light  black  down  which  shad- 
ed his  upper  lip  and  revealed  the  man,  and  with 
one  of  his  hands  he  raised  up  the  beast  he  was  drag- 
ging after  him  on  to  its  hind  legs.  It  was  a  young 
bear,  about  a  year  and  a  half  old,  whose  head  was 
battered  and  smashed  in  a  good  many  places,  thus 
showing  what  a  severe  struggle  it  had  cost  to  bring 
it  down. 

"Where  did  you  find  that  monster?  Who  gave 
it  to  you  ?"  cried  Leonidas,  holding  his  hand  before 
him  as  if  he  believed  that  the  hideous  monster,  even 
when  dead,  could  clutch  hold  of  his  thin  drumsticks 
of  legs. 

"  Where  did  I  find  it  ?  Who  gave  it  me  ?"  cried 
the  youth,  proudly,  and  with  that  he  pointed  to  his 
sister,  and,  as  if  ashamed  to  speak  of  his  heroic  deed 
himself,  he  said,  "  Tell  him,  Milieva  !" 

The  old  Circassian  looked  attentively  at  the  two 
children.  Neither  of  them  perceived  that  their  fa- 
ther was  angry. 

"  We  were  in  the  forest,"  began  the  girl — her  voice 
was  like  a  silvery  bell.  "  Thomar  was  carving  a  fife, 
and  I  was  twining  a  garland  for  his  head,  because 
he  pipes  so  prettily,  when  all  at  once  a  little  kid 
with  its  mother  came  running  towards  us,  and  the 
little  kid  hid  itself  close  to  me — it  trembled  so,  poor 
little  thing !  but  its  mother  only  bleated  and  kept 
running  round  and  round,  just  as  if  it  wanted  to 
speak.  Thomar  looked  all  about,  and  not  far  from 
us  perceived  two  young  bears  running  off,  and  one  of 


144  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

them  had  another  little  white  kid  on  its  back,  which 
was  certainly  the  young  one  of  the  little  she-goat 
that  was  trying  to  talk  to  us.  'Thomar,'  said  I,  'if 
I  were  a  boy,  I  would  go  after  that  young  bear  and 
take  away  the  poor  little  kid  from  it.'  '  And  dost 
thou  think  I  will  not  do  it  ?'  replied  Thomar,  and 
with  that  he  caught  up  his  club  and  went  after  the 
two  young  bears.  One  of  them  perceived  him  and 
quickly  ran  up  a  tree,  but  the  other  would  not  give 
up  his  prey,  but  turned  to  face  Thomar.  Ah  !  you 
should  have  seen  how  Thomar  banged  the  wild 
beast  on  the  head  with  his  club  till  the  blood  ran 
down  its  shoulders,  and  suddenly  it  let  go  the  white 
kid,  which  ran  bleating  after  its  mother." 

The  child  clapped  her  little  hands  for  joy,  while 
her  father  softly  stroked  her  long  hair. 

"  But  now  the  young  bear,  gnashing  its  teeth, 
rushed  upon  Thomar  and  seized  the  club  in  Thomar's 
hands  with  its  teeth  and  claws.  '  Thomar,  don't  let 
him  have  it !'  cried  I.  But,  indeed,  he  had  no  fear 
of  the  wild  beast,  for  he  drew  his  knife  from  his 
girdle  and  thrust  it  with  all  his  might  into  the  head 
of  the  furiously  charging  wild  beast." 

"Oho!"  interrupted  Thomar,  "don't  forget  that 
you  also  rushed  upon  it,  and  gave  me  time  to  draw 
out  my  knife  by  seizing  the  ears  of  the  bear  in  both 
hands  and  dragging  it  off  me." 

The  father  looked  at  the  two  children  with  an 
ever -darkening  face,  but  the  merchant  solemnly 
shook  his  head  and  raised  his  hands  aloft  with  an 
expression  of  horror.  "  O  foolish — O  mad  children  !" 
cried  he. 

"The  bear  had  now  had  enough,"  continued  Mi- 
lieva,  trying  to  give  her  talkative  little  mouth  an 


THE    CIRCASSIAN   AND   HIS   FAMILY  145 

earnest  expression  befitting  her  serious  narration  ; 
"  it  tore  itself  out  of  our  hands,  and  with  a  great 
roar  took  refuge  from  us  in  a  subterranean  cave, 
taking  along  with  it  Thomar's  knife,  buried  in  its 
head.  Now  this  knife  we  had  got  from  Hassan 
Beg,  so  we  could  not  afford  to  lose  it.  So  what  do 
you  think  Thomar  did  ?  He  dived  into  the  narrow 
hole  after  the  bear,  and,  seizing  it  there  by  the 
throat,  throttled  it,  and  dragged  it  out." 

Cold  drops  of  perspiration  trickled  down  the  fore- 
heads of  the  two  men. 

"Then  he  caught  the  young  bear  by  the  foot, 
and  as  it  was  heavy  we  both  dragged  it  along  to- 
gether. We  had  to  make  haste,  for  the  old  bear 
had  scented  our  trail  and  was  after  us,  and  pur- 
sued us  as  far  as  the  herds,  where  the  herd-keepers 
shot  it  down,  but  its  young  one  we  brought  along 
with  us." 

"  O  ye  senseless  children  !"  cried  the  merchant  in 
his  terror.  "  O  blockheads  !  Suppose  the  bear  had 
clawed  your  faces,  you  would  have  been  disfigured 
forevermore.  It  would  really  serve  you  right  if 
your  father  gave  you  a  good  thrashing  with  this 
new  whip." 

And  that  is  what  really  did  happen. 

In  his  wrath  Kasi  Mollah  seized  the  freshly  made, 
mule -driving  whip,  and  cannot  one  imagine  the 
fury,  begotten  of  fear,  which  would  take  possession 
of  a  father's  heart  on  hearing  such  a  hair-bristling 
narrative  from  the  lips  of  his  children  ?  To  poke 
their  noses  into  a  bear's  den,  forsooth  !  The  old 
bear  would  have  torn  the  pair  of  them  to  pieces 
had  she  been  able  to  catch  them  !  They  had  cer- 
tainly well  deserved  a  thrashing,  and  a  good  thrash- 


146  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

ing  too  !  Thomar  would  not  have  wept  or  groaned 
however  many  stripes  he  might  have  got ;  he  only 
clinched  his  teeth,  and,  standing  upright,  bore  with 
tearless  eyes  the  lashing  of  the  whip  on  his  back 
and  shoulders  without  a  cry,  without  a  sob. 

But  Milieva  cast  herself,  shrieking,  on  her  father's 
breast,  and  the  tears  began  to  pour  abundantly 
from  her  radiantly  bright  eyes.  She  caught  hold 
of  the  Circassian's  chastising  right  arm  with  both 
her  hands,  and  begged  so  sweetly,  "  Do  not  hurt 
Thomar;  do  not  hurt  him,  father!  It  was  indeed 
not  his  fault.  I  assure  you  I  set  him  on.  I  told 
him  to  go  after  them.  Thomar  only  went  because 
I  asked  him." 

Kasi  Mollah  tried  to  push  the  child  aside,  where- 
upon she  flung  her  arms  round  Thomar's  neck  and 
protected  her  brother's  body,  exclaiming,  her  face 
all  aglow,  "  'Tis  my  fault,  beat  me,  but  don't  hurt 
Thomar  !" 

The  lad  would  have  disengaged  her  arms,  and, 
clinching  his  teeth  for  pain,  said  : 

"  'Tis  not  true !  Milieva  did  not  urge  me  to  do 
it.  Milieva  was  looking  on  from  a  distance.  Mi- 
lieva was  not  there.  Don't  hit  Milieva." 

But  the  girl  threw  her  arms  so  tightly  round  her 
father  that  he  was  not  able  to  tear  himself  loose. 
At  last,  in  sheer  desperation,  he  was  obliged  to  lift 
the  paternal  instrument  of  admonition  against  the 
girl  also.  But  now  the  youth  snatched  at  the  whip, 
and  exclaimed,  with  sparkling  eyes  : 

"  Strike  her  not,  for  she  has  done  no  wrong  ! 
Beat  me  as  much  as  you  like,  but  do  not  strike  Mi- 
lieva. If  you  do  I  will  leave  your  house,  and  you 
shall  never  see  me  more  !" 


THE    CIRCASSIAN    AND   HIS   FAMILY  147 

"  What,  you  ragged  cub,  you  !"  cried  the  old  Cir- 
cassian, infuriated  by  the  opposition  of  his  son,  and 
forcibly  tearing  away  the  whip  from  his  hand,  he 
struck  the  girl  a  violent  blow  across  the  shoulders 
with  it. 

Milieva  ceased  to  weep,  she  only  pressed  her  lips 
together,  as  her  brother  had  already  taught  her  to 
do,  and  cast  down  her  eyes  ;  but  Thomar  perceived 
a  tremor  run  through  her  tender,  maidenly  bosom 
at  the  torture. 

The  old  Circassian  himself  felt  sorry  for  the  poor 
thing,  though  he  was  too  proud  to  show  it  ;  but  it 
was  plain  he  had  put  his  wrath  behind  him  from 
the  fact  that  he  now  began  to  wind  the  whip  round 
its  handle. 

Thomar  bent  over  the  girl's  shoulder,  and  wher- 
ever he  saw  one  of  the  painful  bruises  which  she 
had  got  on  his  account  he  kissed  it  softly,  and  after 
that  he  kissed  the  girl's  face,  and  those  kisses  were 
parting  kisses. 

He  said  not  a  word  to  anybody  in  the  house,  but 
taking  up  his  shepherd's  staff  and  his  rustic  flute, 
he  went  forth  from  his  father's  dwelling  without 
once  looking  behind  him. 

"Father,"  cried  the  girl,  sobbing,  "Thomar  is 
going  away  forever !" 

The  old  Circassian  made  no  reply.  His  son  did 
not  look  back  at  him,  and  he  did  not  cast  a  glance 
after  his  son,  and  yet  they  were  both  heart-broken 
on  each  other's  account. 

"  He'll  soon  be  back,"  thought  the  father  to  him- 
self. "  Hunger  and  want  will  bring  him  back." 

It  was  late  evening,  and  still  the  youth  had  not 
returned.  The  sun  had  set  long  ago.  A  violent 


148  THE    LION   OP   JANINA 

storm  with  thunder  and  lightning  arose.  The  wind 
roared  among  the  trees  of  the  distant  woods,  and 
the  wolves  howled  in  the  mountains. 

"  Father,  let  me  go  and  bring  back  Thomar," 
pleaded  the  girl,  gazing  sorrowfully  into  the  dark 
night  through  the  window. 

"  He  will  come  back,  of  his  own  accord,"  replied 
the  Circassian,  and  he  would  not  let  the  girl  go. 

"Listen,  how  the  rain  pours,  and  how  the  wild 
beasts  are  howling  !  Thomar  is  all  alone  there  in 
the  tempest,  and  it  is  so  dark." 

'  'Tis  a  good  night  for  a  son  who  forsakes  his 
father,"  replied  the  sheik.  But  within  himself  he 
thought,  "  Some  neighbor  is  sure  to  take  the  lad  in 
and  give  him  shelter." 

At  midnight  the  tempest  abated,  and  the  moon 
shone  forth  brightly.  From  the  distant  woods 
came  floating  back  to  the  village  the  notes  of  a 
rustic  flute.  Neither  father  nor  daughter  had  had 
any  sleep. 

"  Listen,  father!"  said  Milieva.  "  Thomar  is  piping 
in  the  wood  ;  let  me  go  and  bring  him  back  !" 

"That  is  not  a  flute,  but  a  nightingale,"  replied 
the  stony  -  hearted  Circassian.  "  Lie  down  and 
sleep  !" 

Yet  he  himself  could  not  sleep. 

In  the  morning  both  the  tempest  and  the  song 
had  ceased.  The  old  Circassian  pretended  to  be 
asleep.  Milieva  softly  raised  her  head  and  looked 
at  her  father,  and  seeing  that  his  eyes  were  closed, 
stealthily  put  on  her  clothes  and  went  out  of  the 
house  on  tiptoe.  Her  father  did  not  tell  her  not  to 
go.  He  had  already  forgiven  his  son,  and  resolved 
never  to  be  angry  with  him  any  more.  After  all, 


THE    CIRCASSIAN   AND   HIS   FAMILY  149 

it  had  only  been  an  ebullition  of  fatherly  affection 
that  had  made  him  punish  his  son  for  jeopardizing 
his  life  so  blindly. 

Shortly  afterwards  the  jingling  of  the  asses'  bells 
told  him  that  the  Greek,  who  slept  on  the  floor 
outside,  was  getting  ready  to  depart.  The  merchant 
seemed  to  be  in  great  haste.  He  piled  his  boxes 
on  the  backs  of  his  beasts  higgledy-piggledy,  even 
overlooking  a  parcel  or  two  here  and  there,  and  all 
the  time  he  kept  talking  to  himself,  stopping  short 
suddenly  when  he  caught  sight  of  the  Circassian. 

"  I  was  just  going  to  take  leave  of  you,  Chorbadzhi. 
Why  do  you  get  up  so  early  ?  Go  to  sleep  !  What 
a  nice  day  it  is  after  the  storm  !  Salam  alakiim  ! 
Peace  be  with  you  !  Greet  my  kinsmen,  your  sweet 
children.  No,  I  will  speak  no  more  of  your  children. 
I  will  do  as  you  desire,  I  promise  you,  and  what  I 
have  once  promised —  So  our  business  is  at  an 
end  ?  You  are  a  worthy  man,  Kasi  Mollah  !  .  .  .  You 
are  a  good  father — a  very  good  father.  I  only  wish 
every  man  was  like  you.  The  only  thing  that 
grieves  me  is  that  you  cannot  join  our  holy  cove- 
nant. The  Hellene  and  the  Circassian  groan  to- 
gether beneath  the  yoke  of  a  common  tyrant.  And 
then  you  don't  reflect  who  are  on  our  side.  Our 
northern  neighbor  is  always  ready  to  liberate  us. 
I  say  no  more.  To  a  wise  man  a  hint  is  a  revelation. 
But  do  you  not  long  for  glory  ?  You  have  no  glori- 
ous ancestors.  With  you  there  are  no  memories 
of  a  Marathon,  a  Plataa.  .  .  .  God  bless  you,  Kasi 
Mollah  !  Go  on  shooting  lots  of  antelopes,  and  I'll 
come  back  and  buy  the  hides  from  you  ;  mind  you 
let  me  have  them  cheap  !  Take  this  kiss  for  your- 
self, this  for  your  son,  and  this  third  one  for  your 


150  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

daughter.  Then  you  won't  give  them  to  me,  eh  ? 
Well,  God  bless  you,  Kasi  Mollah  !" 

The  sheik  felt  as  if  a  great  stone  had  rolled  off  his 
breast  when  at  last  he  saw  his  guest  depart,  though 
even  from  afar  the  Greek  turned  back  and  shouted 
all  manner  of  things  about  Leonidas  and  the  other 
heroes.  But  the  Circassian  did  not  listen  to  him. 
He  went  back  into  his  house  again,  lest  he  should 
seem  to  be  moping  for  his  children. 

Leonidas  Argyrocantharides,  on  the  other  hand, 
whistling  merrily,  proceeded  with  his  asses  on  his 
way  to  the  forest,  and,  when  he  found  himself  quite 
alone  there,  began  to  sing  in  a  loud  voice  the  song 
of  freedom  of  the  Hetairea,  which  put  him  into  such 
a  good  humor  that  he  even  began  to  flourish  his 
weapon  in  the  most  warlike  manner,  though,  un- 
fortunately, there  was  nobody  at  hand  whom  he 
could  smite. 

It  would  be  doing  a  great  injustice  to  the  worthy 
merchant,  however,  to  suppose  that  he  was  fatiguing 
his  precious  lungs  without  rhyme  or  reason,  for  dur- 
ing this  melodious  song  he  kept  on  looking  continu- 
ally about  him,  now  to  the  right  and  now  to  the  left. 
He  knew  what  he  was  about. 

Yes,  he  had  calculated  well.  Any  one  who  might 
happen  to  be  hidden  in  the  forest  was  bound  to  hear 
the  great  blood-stirring  song.  He  had  not  advanced 
more  than  a  hundred  yards  or  so  when  a  well-known 
suppliant  voice  struck  his  ear.  It  came  from  among 
the  thick  trees. 

"  Oh,  please  !  listen,  please  !" 

At  first  he  pretended  not  to  know  who  it  was, 
and,  shading  his  eyes  with  his  hand,  made  a  great 
pretence  of  looking  hard. 


THE   CIRCASSIAN    AND   HIS   FAMILY  151 

"  Oho,  my  little  girl !  so  'tis  you,  eh  ?  Little 
Milieva,  by  all  that's  holy  !  Come  nearer,  child." 

The  girl  was  not  alone.  She  had  found  her 
brother,  and  was  shoving  and  pushing  the  lad  on 
in  front  of  her,  who,  sulkily  and  with  downcast 
eyes,  was  skulking  about  among  the  trees  as  if  he 
were  ashamed  to  appear  before  the  Greek,  who  had 
been  a  witness  of  his  flogging. 

Milieva  had  insisted  on  his  returning  home  and 
begging  his  father's  pardon,  and  the  lad  had  con- 
sented, not  for  his  own  sake,  but  for  his  sister's. 

"What  a  good  job  I've  met  you  !  Come  here, 
little  girl.  Don't  be  afraid  of  me.  I  want  to  whis- 
per something  in  your  ear  that  your  brother  must 
not  hear." 

And  he  bent  down  towards  the  girl  from  the  back 
of  the  ass  and  whispered  in  her  ear,  it  is  true,  but 
quite  loud  enough  for  her  brother  to  hear  also  : 

"My  dear  child,  don't  take  your  brother  home 
now,  for  your  father  is  furious  with  the  pair  of  you, 
and  is  coming  after  you  straightway.  That  is  why 
I  have  been  singing  so  loudly,  for  I  thought  you 
had  come  hither  and  might  hear ;  and  let  me  tell 
you  that  it  will  be  just  as  well  for  Thomar  to  hide 
himself  for  a  time,  for  your  father,  when  I  left  him, 
had  shouldered  his  musket,  and  he  swore  in  his 
wrath  that  he  would  hunt  his  runaway  son  with 
the  dogs,  and  shoot  him  down  wherever  he  found 
him." 

"  Let  him  shoot  me  down  !"  cried  the  lad,  defi- 
antly. He  had  heard  the  whole  of  the  whisper. 

The  good -hearted  merchant  shook  his  head  re- 
provingly. 

"Keep  your  temper,  my  son  ;  anger  is  mischiev- 


152  .  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

ous.  It  would  be  much  better  if  you  left  these 
parts  for  a  little  while,  and  Milieva  can  go  back  in 
the  mean  time  and  pacify  her  father.  I  should  men- 
tion, however,  that  Kasi  Mollah  is  preparing  a  rope 
in  salt-water,  with  which  he  intends  to  beat  her." 

"  What !"  cried  Thomar,  with  flashing  eyes.  "  He 
would  whip  her  again,  and  with  a  rope  ?" 

He  could  say  no  more.  The  two  children  fell 
upon  each  other's  necks  and  wept  bitterly. 

"  Poor  children  !  orphans  worthy  of  compassion  !" 
cried  the  sympathetic  Leonidas,  stroking  their 
pretty  heads.  "It  is  plain  that  they  have  no 
mother.  Willingly  would  I  shed  my  blood  for  you. 
But  it  is  vain  to  speak  to  that  savage  madman.  The 
last  thing  he  said  was  that  your  mother  had  been 
faithless  to  him,  and  that  was  why  he  was  so  furious 
against  you." 

"  Then  he  shall  never  see  us  again,"  said  the  lad, 
tenderly  embracing  his  sister.  "  I  will  go  away,  and 
I  will  take  you  with  me." 

"  Where  ?"  said  his  sister,  trembling. 

"  The  world  is  wide,"  said  the  lad.  "  I  have  often 
seen  from  the  summits  of  the  mountains  how  far 
it  stretches  away.  I  will  go  away  as  far  as  ever  I 
can." 

"  But  what  provision  have  you  got  ?"  inquired  the 
worthy  merchant. 

At  this  idea  the  lad  seemed  to  hesitate,  and  for  a 
moment  his  face  flushed  red  ;  but  he  soon  recovered 
his  sang-froid. 

"You  complained  the  other  day  that  your  ass- 
driver  had  run  away,  and  that  you  had  all  the 
trouble  of  looking  after  the  beasts  yourself.  .  Take 
me  for  your  ass-driver.  I  will  do  all  your  work  for 


THE    CIRCASSIAN   AND   HIS   FAMILY  153 

you,  and  I  will  ask  nothing  except  that  Milieva  may 
come  with  me  without  doing  any  hard  work.  I  will 
work  extra  in  her  stead." 

The  merchant  was  quite  overcome  by  these 
words. 

"  O  children,  what  words  must  I  hear  !  Thou  art 
the  pearl  of  youths,  my  son.  What  a  pity  thou 
wast  not  born  in  Samos,  the  isle  of  heroes  !  Thou 
shalt  be  no  ass-driver  of  mine ;  no,  thou  shalt  be 
my  own  son,  and  thy  sister  shall  be  my  own 
daughter,  and  ye  shall  both  sit  on  my  asses,  not 
follow  after  them.  In  the  neighboring  village  I 
shall  get  ass-drivers  and  to  spare.  I  will  share  my 
last  crumb  with  you,  and  ye  shall  dwell  at  home 
within  my  palace  as  if  ye  were  my  own  children." 
And  with  that  he  embraced  them  both. 

As  for  the  children,  they  were  overpowered  by  so 
much  unexpected  goodness,  and  did  not  hesitate  to 
accept  the  offer,  although  Milieva  said,  somewhat 
tremulously : 

"  But  you  will  take  us  back  afterwards  to  our 
father,  wont  you  ?" 

"Certainly;  is  he  not  my  good  friend?  When 
we  get  to  my  house  I  will  let  him  know  that  you 
are  with  me,  and  he  will  be  very  glad.  But  first 
we  will  go  from  here  to  splendid  cities  by  the  sea, 
where  edifices  three  stories  high  float  on  the  sur- 
face of  the  water.  There  my  great  palaces  are — you 
could  put  the  whole  of  your  father's  house  inside 
the  hall  of  any  one  of  them — and  my  gardens  are 
full  of  those  beautiful  fruits  which  I  have  so  often 
brought  for  you  in  my  sack.  Thomar  shall  have 
a  beautiful  steed.  You  would  like  to  ride  a  horse, 
my  son,  eh  ?  Well,  don't  be  afraid,  and  it  shall  fly 


154  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

away  with  you  like  the  wind.  And  it  shall  have 
a  mane  as  white  as  a  swan's — or  perhaps  you'd  like 
a  black  one  ?  I  have  got  both,  and  you  shall  sit  on 
which  you  like,  with  a  sword  dangling  at  your  side. 
And  when  you  draw  that  sword  ?  Ah,  ha  !  It  shall 
be  a  bright  Damascus  blade,  and  you  will  be  able 
to  make  it  span  your  body  right  round  without 
breaking.  I  will  bet  anything  that  among  five  hun- 
dred Turkish  youths  you  will  carry  off  the  wreath 
of  pearls  in  the  sports.  How  nicely  that  wreath  of 
pearls  will  become  Milieva's  head  !  How  beauti- 
fully the  folds  of  the  silken  robe  embroidered  with 
flowers  will  sweep  around  her  slim  figure  !  And 
then  the  palm-leaf  shawl  when  she  dances  !  Eh, 
children  ?" 

"  When  will  you  take  us  back  to  our  father  ?" 
inquired  the  girl,  sorrowfully. 

"  Why,  at  once,  of  course.  As  soon  as  Thomar 
has  become  a  famous  man  ;  as  soon  as  half  the 
world  recognizes  him  as  a  valiant  bey,  and  the 
fame  of  him  spreads  to  the  huts  of  Himri  likewise. 
Then  will  Thomar  go  with  you  to  your  father. 
He  will  sit  on  a  proudly  prancing  horse,  tossing  its 
head  impatiently  beneath  its  gold  trappings.  A 
grand  retinue  will  come  riding  behind  him — valiant 
heroes,  all  of  them,  with  glittering  shields  and 
lances.  And  after  them  will  follow  a  litter  on  two 
white  asses,  with  curtains  of  cloth  of  gold,  and  in 
this  litter  will  sit  a  wondrously  bright  and  beauti- 
ful maiden,  and  men  will  stand  at  all  the  gates 
and  cry,  4  Make  way  for  the  valiant  lord  and  the 
majestic  lady  !' 

"  But,  meanwhile,  old  Kasi  Mollah  will  be  sitting 
at  his  door,  and,  perceiving  the  splendid  magnates, 


THE   CIRCASSIAN   AND   HIS   FAMILY  155 

will  do  obeisance  to  them  ;  then  you  will  leap  from 
your  horse,  assist  Milieva  to  descend  from  her 
litter,  and  will  go  to  meet  him.  He,  however,  will 
not  recognize  you.  Milieva  will  be  so  much  rosier, 
and  her  figure  so  much  more  lovely  ;  and  as  for 
you,  you  will  be  wearing  a  beard  and  mustache, 
and  without  doubt  you  will  be  scarred  with  wounds 
received  upon  the  field  of  glory.  So  Kasi  Mollah 
will  conduct  you  into  his  house  with  the  utmost 
respect  and  make  you  sit  down  ;  but  you  will  have 
victuals  and  sherbet  brought  from  your  carriages, 
and  will  constrain  him  to  eat  and  drink  with  you. 
Then  you  will  fall  a-talking,  and  you  will  ask  him 
whether  he  has  any  children,  and  thereupon  the 
tears  will  start  to  his  eyes." 

"  Oh,"  sighed  the  girl,  melting  at  the  thought. 

"  No,  no  ;  it  would  not  do  at  all  to  make  yourself 
known  all  at  once.  The  joy  would  be  too  much  for 
him  ;  he  might  even  have  a  stroke.  You,  little 
Milieva,  would  be  content  to  sit  and  listen,  leaving 
Thomar  to  speak.  And  Thomar  will  say  that  he  has 
heard  tidings  of  Kasi  Mollah's  lost  children,  grad- 
ually leading  him  on  from  hope  to  joy,  and  at  last 
you  will  throw  yourselves  on  his  neck,  and  say  to 
him,  '  I  am  thy  son  Thomar  !  I  am  thy  daughter 
Milieva?'  How  beautiful  that  will  be  !" 

The  heads  of  the  children  were  completely  turned 
by  this  conversation,  and  they  followed  the  merchant 
joyfully  all  the  way  to  the  next  village.  There  Leon- 
idas  Argyrocantharides  rested  for  a  little  while,  and 
made  the  children  dismount  and  have  some  lunch 
in  a  hut.  Then  he  produced  a  gourd  full  of  strong, 
sweet  wine,  and  the  children  drank  of  it.  The  wine 
removed  whatever  of  sadness  was  still  in  their  hearts, 


156  THE    LION    OP  JANINA 

and  they  then  resumed  their  journey.  The  asses  he 
left  behind,  but  two  well-saddled  horses  were  await- 
ing them  in  front  of  the  hut.  On  these  the  children 
mounted,  and  leaving  the  asses  to  stroll  leisurely 
on  by  one  road,  under  the  charge  of  the  hired  ass- 
drivers,  they  themselves  took  another.  How  de- 
lighted the  children  were  with  their  fine  steeds  ! 

The  sheik,  meantime,  was  still  awaiting  the  return 
of  his  children,  and  as  they  did  not  come  back  by  the 
evening  he  began  to  make  inquiries  about  them. 
Some  of  his  neighbors,  who  had  been  in  the  forest, 
informed  him  that  they  had  seen  the  children  with 
the  Greek  merchant ;  they  were  riding  on  his  asses. 
At  this  Kasi  Mollah  began  roaring  like  a  wild 
beast. 

"  He  has  stolen  my  children  !"  he  groaned  in  his 
despair,  and  flew  back  home  for  his  horse  and  his 
weapons,  not  even  waiting  for  his  comrades  to  take 
horse  also.  One  by  one  they  galloped  after  him, 
but  could  not  easily  overtake  him. 

Riding  helter-skelter  he  soon  reached  the  neigh- 
boring village,  but  here  the  track  of  the  asses  led  him 
off  on  a  false  scent,  for  only  when  he  overtook  them 
did  he  realize  that  the  merchant  with  his  children 
had  gone  far  away  in  another  direction. 

With  the  rage  of  despair  in  his  heart  he  galloped 
back  again.  Not  till  evening  did  he  dismount  from 
his  horse  ;  then  he  watered  his  horse  in  a  brook  and 
rushed  on  again.  Through  the  whole  moonlit  night 
he  pursued  the  Greek,  and  as  towards  dawn  Argyro- 
cantharides  looked  behind  him  he  saw  a  great  cloud 
of  dust  on  the  road  rapidly  approaching  him,  and 
the  bright  points  of  lances  were  in  the  midst  of  it. 

"Well,  children,"  said  he,  "here  we  must  all  die 


THE    CIRCASSIAN    AND   HIS   FAMILY  157 

together,  for  your  father  is  coming  and  will  slay  the 
three  of  us.  But  whip  up  your  horses." 

Then,  full  of  terror,  they  bent  over  their  horses' 
necks,  and  the  desperate  race  began. 

The  Circassian  perceived  the  merchant  and  the 
children,  and  rushed  after  them  with  a  savage  howl. 
They  had  better  horses,  but  the  Circassian's  horses 
were  more  accustomed  to  mountainous  paths  and 
had  better  riders. 

The  distance  between  the  two  companies  was 
visibly  diminishing.  The  merchant  flogged  with 
his  whip  the  horses  on  which  the  children  were  rid- 
ing. They  dared  not  look  back. 

Their  father  shouted  to  them  to  turn  their  horses' 
reins.  He  called  Thomar  by  name,  and  bade  him 
tear  the  merchant  from  his  saddle.  The  son  heard 
his  father's  voice,  he  heard  his  own  name  mentioned  ; 
but  he  fancied  his  father  was  threatening  him,  and 
clung  to  his  horse  still  more  tightly. 

A  steep  mountain  torrent  ran  across  the  road  in 
front  of  them.  If  only  the  Greek  could  succeed  in 
getting  across  it  with  but  two  minutes  to  spare,  so 
that  he  might  pitch  the  little  wooden  bridge  over  it 
down  into  the  abyss  below,  he  would  be  saved,  for 
the  space  between  the  two  steep  mountain-sid^s  was 
much  too  wide  for  a  horse  to  leap,  and  a  ford  was 
not  to  be  found  within  an  hour's  ride. 

By  the  time  they  came  to  the  bridge  the  pur- 
suing Circassians  were  scarcely  distant  more  than 
three  gunshots,  and  Kasi  Mollah  was  riding  well 
in  advance  of  the  rest.  He  must  needs  overtake 
them  before  the  Greek  could  push  the  bridge 
over. 

At  that  instant  the  horse  on  which  Milieva  sat 


158  THE    LION   OP  JANINA 

slightly  stumbled,  and  plunging  forward  on  to  its 
knees,  fractured  its  leg. 

"  Hah  !"  cried  the  sheik,  with  wild  delight,  "  I  have 
got  back  one  of  my  children,  at  any  rate." 

But  how  amazed  was  he  when  he  saw  Milieva,  in- 
stead of  running  to  him  or  even  remaining  in  the 
road,  cry  out  in  terror  to  her  brother  and  raise  her 
arms  towards  him,  and  Thomar,  never  expecting  to 
save  her,  bent  down  from  his  horse,  and  grasping 
his  sister  round  the  waist  with  a  swift  hand,  placed 
her  in  the  saddle  in  front  of  him,  casting  a  wild  look 
behind  him,  and  then  galloping  on  farther. 

Kasi  Mollah  suddenly  reined  in  his  flying  horse  and 
stopped  short,  allowing  them  to  escape.  Not  a  step 
farther  did  he  pursue  them.  By  the  time  his  com- 
rades had  joined  him  the  Greek  was  well  on  the  other 
side  of  the  bridge,  and  they  could  all  see  Thomar 
helping  the  merchant  to  cast  it  down. 

Two  burning  tear-drops  stood  in  Kasi  Mollah's 
eyes.  They  really  burned,  and  he  felt  the  pain. 
And  yet — and  yet,  when  the  two  children  sat  in 
the  saddle  again,  Milieva  extended  her  hands  tow- 
ards her  father  as  if  in  most  ardent  supplication. 
What  was  the  meaning  of  it? 

The  good  Greek  shortly  afterwards  arrived  safely 
in  Smyrna  with  the  children,  and  had  them  taught 
singing,  riding,  and  how  to  walk  about  in  nice 
clothes,  and  some  years  after  he  sold  them  to  the 
Seraglio  of  the  Grand  Vizier  for  two  thousand  se- 
quins. 

And  all  that  he  had  said  at  random  to  the  chil- 
dren during  the  journey,  to  cheer  their  spirits,  ac- 
tually came  to  pass,  as  we  shall  presently  see. 

When  Sultan  Mahmoud  lost  his  favorite  damsel 


THE    CIRCASSIAN   AND    HIS    FAMILY  159 

so  strangely,  Milieva  was  brought  into  the  Seraglio 
instead.  The  girl  was  then  about  fourteen  years 
old.  The  Circassian  girls  at  that  age  are  fully  ma- 
ture, and  the  bloom  of  their  beauty  is  at  its  prime. 
Milieva,  from  the  very  first  day  when  she  entered 
the  harem,  became  the  Sultan's  favorite  damsel. 

Thomar  joined  the  ranks  of  the  ichoglanler,  a 
band  of  youths  who  are  brought  up  in  the  outer 
court  and  form  the  Sultan's  body-guard. 

It  was  in  this  year  that  Mahmoud  instituted  the 
Akinji  corps,  selecting  its  members  from  amongst 
the  Janissaries,  and  formed  them  into  a  small  reg- 
ular army.  Thomar  very  soon  won  for  himself  the 
command  of  a  company,  and  continued  to  rise  high- 
er and  higher  till  at  length  he  reached  the  emi- 
nence which  the  merchant  had  foretold  to  him ;  and 
when  the  course  of  time  brought  with  it  the  day  on 
which  he  was  to  see  Kasi  Mollah  again,  he  had  be- 
come Derbend  Aga,  one  of  the  Sultan's  very  high- 
est officials,  and  his  name  was  mentioned  respect- 
fully by  all  true  believers.  And  in  the  village  of 
Himri  his  name  was  also  mentioned.  Kasi  Mollah 
often  heard  it  attached  to  the  title  of  "  bey,"  and 
Thomar  also  heard  a  good  deal  of  the  village  of 
Himri  and  of  Kasi  Mollah,  for  they  now  called  his 
father  "murshid,"  and  the  name  "murshid"  is  full 
of  mournful  recollections  for  both  Moscow  and 
Petersburg. 

But  of  all  these  things  we  shall  know  more  at  an- 
other time. 


CHAPTER  X 

THE    AVENGER 

AND  what  now  is  old  All  Tepelenti  about  in  his 
nest  at  Janina  ?  Is  he  content  with  a  state  of  things 
which  results  in  this — that  he  must  either  perish  or 
pass  the  brief  remainder  of  his  days  in  constant 
fighting?  Is  he  satisfied  with  this  sea  of  blood 
over  which  the  tempest  rages,  and  whose  shores  he 
cannot  see  ? 

Not  yet  has  he  surrendered  to  fate.  His  country 
has  declared  war  against  him,  the  Sultan  has  pro- 
nounced his  death-sentence,  his  family  have  aban- 
doned and  turned  against  him  ;  but  AH  has  not 
suffered  his  sword  to  be  broken  in  twain.  For  eight 
and  seventy  years  he  has  been  the  scourge  of  his 
enemies,  the  defence  of  his  country,  the  Sultan's 
right  hand,  the  patriarch  of  his  family,  and  in  his 
nine  and  seventieth  year  the  Sultan  and  his  re- 
lations say  to  him,  "  Die  !  thou  hast  lived  long 
enough  !"  And  he,  by  way  of  reply,  set  his  coun- 
try in  flames,  shook  the  throne  of  the  Sultan,  and 
extirpated  his  own  kinsfolk. 

The  Greeks,  whose  tyrant  he  once  was,  are  now 
his  allies.  Tepelenti  provides  them  with  arms  and 
money,  and  with  good  and  bad  counsel,  whichever 
they  want  most. 


THE    AVENGER  l6l 

Three  armies  were  sent  out  against  him,  and  he 
has  annihilated  all  these. 

His  enemy,  Gaskho  Bey,  has  lost  his  army  in  a 
battle  against  the  rebels  without  anything  to  show 
for  it,  and  now  only  holds  the  fortresses  round 
about  Janina,  to  wit  :  Arta,  Prevesa,  Lepanto,  Tri- 
polizza,  and  La  Gullia.  The  Hellenes  are  besieging 
every  one  of  them  day  by  day.  One  day  Ali  pro- 
claims that  in  Tripolizza  there  are  five  hundred 
eminent  Greeks  whom  the  Turks  compel  to  fight 
along  with  them.  At  this  report  the  besiegers  at- 
tack the  fortress  with  redoubled  fury.  Now  these 
five  hundred  Greeks  Ali  himself  got  together  while 
Tripolizza  was  still  in  his  possession.  When  he 
was  obliged  to  leave  the  fortress,  he  cast  these 
Greeks  down  into  a  well,  placed  three  loads  of 
stones  upon  them,  and  covered  the  spot  with  grass. 
This  he  did  himself. 

Exhausted  by  furiously  fighting  against  superior 
numbers,  the  Turks  surrendered  in  three  days  to 
Kleon,  who  conducted  the  siege,  simply  stipulating 
that  they  might  be  allowed  to  go  free,  and  this  was 
promised  them.  When,  however,  the  fortress  was 
surrendered  to  the  Greeks,  their  first  question  was, 
"Where  are  the  hostages,  our  brethren?"  The 
Turks  were  amazed.  They  knew  not  what  to  re- 
ply, for  they  had  no  hostages  in  their  hands. 

Then  a  Suliote  warrior  discovered  the  pit  which 
had  been  sown  over  with  grass,  and  what  a  sight 
presented  itself  when  they  broke  it  open  ! 

Thirsting  for  blood  and  vengeance,  the  Greeks 
flung  themselves  forthwith  on  the  disarmed  garri- 
son, and  despatched  them  to  the  very  last  man,  nay, 
they  did  not  leave  a  living  woman  or  child  remain- 
ii 


l62  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

ing  in  the  fortress — they  threw  them  all  down  head- 
long from  the  bastions. 

But  Ali  Pasha  smiled  to  himself  in  the  fortress  of 
Janina. 

He  himself  had  destroyed  more  Turks  than  the 
whole  Greek  host  had  done. 

When  Demetrius  Yprilanti  captured  Lepanto,  he 
allowed  the  garrison  a  free  exit  from  the  citadel. 
Demetrius  himself  signed  the  terms  of  the  sur- 
render. But  when  the  Turks  emerged  from  the 
fortress,  Ali  Pasha's  Suliotes  rushed  upon  them  and 
cut  them  all  to  pieces.  Yprilanti,  full  of  indigna- 
tion, threw  himself  in  the  midst  of  them,  exhibiting 
the  document  in  which  he  had  promised  the  Turks 
their  lives.  But  Kleon  only  laughed — he  had  learn- 
ed that  brutal,  scornful  laugh  from  Ali. 

"  Don't  trouble  yourself  about  them,"  cried  he. 
"  We  are  only  killing  those  whose  names  are  not 
written  in  the  agreement." 

Yprilanti  turned  from  the  butchery  in  disgust, 
and  immediately  embarking  his  army,  set  sail  for 
Chios  again. 

Ah,  the  Greeks  had  learned  a  great  deal  from 
Ali.  Woe  to  those  Mussulmans  who  fall  alive  into 
their  hands,  or  who  are  not  so  brave  or  so  cunning 
as  they  themselves  are !  The  Turkish  general, 
Omar  Vrione,  along  his  whole  line  of  advance, 
marched  between  rows  of  high  gibbets  on  which 
bleached  the  bones  to  horribly  tortured  Turks. 
Here  and  there,  by  way  of  variety,  nailed  by  the 
hands  to  upright  planks,  were  the  bodies  of  dead 
Jews,  half  flayed  and  singed — a  ghastly  spectacle. 

Verily  the  descendants  of  the  heroes  of  Marathon 
have  diverged  very  far  indeed  from  their  forefa- 


THE    AVENGER  163 

thers,  and  the  experienced  Turkish  commander  knew 
right  well  that  he  .is  a  bad  soldier  who  even  de- 
scends to  cutting  off  the  head  of  his  slain  foe  on  the 
battle-field. 

At  Paid,  Omar  Vrione  encountered  the  army  of 
Odysseus.  Now  Omar  was  at  one  time  one  of  the 
best  of  Ali  Pasha's  lieutenants.  Ali  promoted  him 
to  the  rank  or  general,  and  he  had  begun  life  as  a 
shepherd-boy.  Ali  had  taught  him  how  to  use  his 
weapons,  and  now  he  turned  them  against  his  master. 

The  Sultan  had  intrusted  to  him  a  fine  army 
with  which  he  had  assisted  Gaskho  Bey  to  beleaguer 
Ali.  It  consisted  of  eight  thousand  gallant  Asiatic 
infantry,  two  thousand  Spahis,  and  eight  guns. 
The  leader  of  the  Spahis  was  Zaid,  the  Bey  of  Kas- 
torid,  Ali's  favorite  grandson,  whom,  twenty  years 
before,  he  had  rocked  upon  his  knee,  and  whom, 
while  still  a  child,  he  had  carried  in  front  of  him  on 
his  saddle,  and  taught  him  to  ride.  Zaid  himself 
had  asked,  as  a  favor,  that  he  might  lead  a  division 
of  cavalry  against  his  grandfather.  He  had  prom- 
ised his  mother  to  seize  that  sinful  old  head  by  its 
gray  beard  and  bring  it  home  to  her. 

A  precious  grandson,  truly  ! 

So  Omar  Vrione  reached  Pulo.  Looking  down 
from  the  hill-tops  there,  he  discerned  the  army  of 
Odysseus.  He  saw  him  planting  his  white  banners 
in  rows  upon  the  heights,  and  without  giving  his 
forces  a  moment's  rest,  he  set  his  own  martial 
chimneys  a-smoking  and  attacked  the  Greeks  with 
all  his  might. 

After  an  hour's  combat,  in  which  they  fought  man 
to  man,  the  Greeks  were  driven  from  their  intrench- 
ments,  and  began  slowly  descending  into  the  valley. 


164  THE    LION   OP  JANINA 

The  Timariotes  remained  behind,  and  Zaid  began 
to  send  forward  his  Spahis  to  attack  the  retreating 
army  in  the  rear.  Odysseus  slowly  retraced  his 
steps  till  he  came  to  Pulo.  There  his  war-path 
stopped.  His  banner  was  no  longer  white,  but  red ; 
it  was  sprinkled  with  the  blood  of  the  many  heroes 
who  had  died  in  its  defence. 

Suddenly,  from  the  heights  of  Pindus  above  them 
resounded  the  tempestuous  melody  of  the  "  Marseil- 
laise," which  the  Greeks  had  adopted  as  their  war- 
song,  and  rapid  as  a  storm-swollen  mountain  torrent 
the  Suliotes,  with  Kleon  and  Artemis  in  the  van, 
hurled  themselves  upon  the  Turks. 

Omar  Vrione  was  caught  between  two  fires.  It 
was  too  late  to.  turn  back,  too  late  to  reform  his 
order  of  battle.  His  guns  were  useless,  his  cavalry 
could  not  move  forward,  and  his  infantry  columns 
were  so  completely  isolated  that  they  could  not 
render  each  other  any  assistance. 

The  general  saw  that  he  could  not  save  his  army, 
but  he  was  at  least  determined  not  to  save  himself, 
so  he  hastened  to  where  the  fight  was  raging  most 
furiously. 

A  wild,  merciless  metie  was  proceeding  between 
the  inextricably  intermingled  foes.  Forcing  his 
way  along,  Omar  Vrione  suddenly  encountered,  in 
the  midst  of  reeking  powder  and  streaming  blood,  a 
tall  youth  with  a  blackened  face,  whom  he  at  once 
recognized  as  Kleon.  There,  then,  they  stood,  face 
to  face.  Three  years  before,  when  Ali  had  sent 
Omar  Vrione  to  threaten  the  Suliotes,  Kleon  fled 
before  him,  and  then  he  had  called  after  the  fugi- 
tive, "  Stand,  I  would  send  thy  head  to  Ali  Tepe- 
lenti  !" 


THE    AVENGER  165 

And  there,  indeed,  Omar  Vrione  fell,  combating, 
and  Kleon  cut  off  his  head. 

How  strange  is  fate  ! 

The  fall  of  Omar  Vrione  sealed  the  fate  of  his 
army.  The  Turks  fled  wherever  they  saw  the 
chance,  leaving  all  their  guns,  all  their  flags,  and  all 
their  officers  in  the  lurch.  The  cavalry  had  no 
chance  of  escaping.  Half  of  it  fell,  the  other  half 
surrendered. 

Zaid,  in  the  moment  of  extremest  danger,  took 
his  silver  aigrette  out  of  his  turban  and  threw  it 
away  ;  then  he  changed  caftans  with  his  servant, 
and  mingled  with  the  rank-and-file,  so  that  none 
might  recognize  him.  It  would  have  been  much 
better  for  a  child  like  him  to  have  remained  at  home 
than  to  have  gone  hunting  that  old  lion,  his  aged 
grandfather. 

The  Suliotes  surrounded  Zaid's  company.  "  Dis- 
mount from  your  horses  !"  exclaimed  the  clear  voice 
of  Kleon. 

The  Spahis,  full  of  shame,  dismounted. 

"Which  is  your  leader,  Zaid?"  cried  Kleon,  ad- 
vancing. The  edge  of  his  sword  was  dripping  with 
blood. 

"  I  am,"  said  the  servant  who.had  changed  clothes 
with  Zaid,  and  he  approached  Kleon. 

"  Bow  down  before  me,  thou  slave  !"  cried  Kleon, 
kicking  him. 

The  servant  bowed  his  head  before  the  victor, 
and  he  never  raised  it  again,  for  Kleon  chopped  it 
off  with  his  bloody  sword,  and  sticking  it  on  the 
point  thereof,  raised  it  on  high  and  cried  to  his 
bloodthirsty  comrades  :  "  Here  is  their  second  gen- 
eral, Zaid,  who  came  to  subdue  us  !  Hallelujah  !" 


l66  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

and  the  victorious  host  repeated  after  him,  "  Hal- 
lelujah !  Hallelujah  !" 

And  then  they  stuck  the  heads  of  the  two  gen- 
erals on  the  points  of  two  lances,  and  carried  them 
through  the  streets  of  Pulo  in  the  sight  of  the 
crowds  of  women  and  children  on  the  housetops, 
bellowing,  "We  have  conquered!  We  have  con- 
quered !  These  are  the  heads  of  the  enemy's  lead- 
ers :  one  of  them  is  Omar  Vrione,  and  the  other  is 
Zaid  Bey  !  Kyrie  eleison  ?" 

And  what  face  was  ever  so  pale  as  Zaid's  when 
he  heard  his  name  called  out  and  saw  how  they 
mocked  and  jeered  at  the  head  they  took  for  his  ? 

The  Suliotes  returned  to  Janina  with  the  captives 
and  the  emblems  of  victory.  Tepelenti,  hearing 
that  they  had  decapitated  Zaid,  went  down  into 
the  camp  and  demanded  his  head. 

Kleon  was  sitting  in  front  of  his  tent  en  desha- 
bille. He  was  not  disposed  to  part  with  the  sym- 
bol of  victory,  but  wanted  it  to  dazzle  the  eyes  of 
the  host  for  some  little  time  longer. 

But  Ali  was  ready  at  once  with  a  good  idea : 
"  Cut  off  the  head  of  another  prisoner,"  said  he, 
"in  its  stead  ;  none  will  notice  the  difference." 

Kleon  acted  upon  the  advice,  and  immediately 
sent  forth  his  men-at-arms  to  take  the  exhibited 
head  to  Ali.  But  Ali  shook  his  own  head  when  he 
saw  it,  and  wagging  his  finger  at  Kleon,  he  said : 
"  Thou  art  over-young,  my  son,  to  try  and  impose 
upon  Ali.  Thou  wouldst  turn  my  counsel  to  my 
own  hurt,  and  give  me  the  head  of  another  instead 
of  Zaid's  !" 

Kleon  leaped  to  his  feet.  "  Do  you  mean  to  say 
that  is  not  Zaid's  head  ?" 


THE   AVENGER  167 

"Of  a  truth  it  is  not.  Dost  thou  suppose  I  do 
not  know  the  youth — I  who  used  to  dandle  him  on 
my  knee  ever  since  he  was  a  child,  and  was  the  first 
to  place  a  sword  in  his  hand  ?" 

"  But,  indeed,  he  himself  told  me,"  cried  Kleon, 
pointing  at  the  head,  "that  he  was  Zaid,  and  he 
was  wearing  a  general's  uniform." 

"  'Tis  a  slave,"  said  Tepelenti,  regarding  the  head 
more  closely.  "  Dost  thou  not  see  ?  His  ears  have 
been  cropped,  so  that  he  may  not  wear  ear-rings  in 
them,  which  only  great  lords  may  do." 

"  Then  Zaid  has  gone  free  !" 

"Zaid  will  be  among  the  captives,"  said  Tepelenti. 
"  I  would  recognize  him  amongst  a  thousand.  He 
was  my  favorite  grandson.  His  image  even  now  is 
engraved  in  my  heart." 

Then  they  went  down  amongst  the  captives.  Ali 
had  scarce  cast  a  glance  at  them  when  he  pointed 
with  his  finger. 

"  There  he  is  !  Dost  thou  not  perceive  how  much 
paler  his  face  is  than  the  faces  of  the  others  ?" 

Kleon  wrathfully  drew  his  sword  and  would  have 
rushed  upon  the  person  indicated,  but  Ali  held  his 
hand. 

"  What  doest  thou  ?  Wouldst  thou  slay  my  grand- 
son before  my  very  eyes  ?" 

"Thou  didst  ask  for  his  head,  and  it  shall  be 
thine." 

"  But  now  I  ask  for  his  life,  Kleon.  Zaid  is  my 
favorite  grandson.  I  brought  him  up.  I  loved 
him  better  than  his  dear  mother — better  than  all 
my  children.  Look  now,  I  share  with  thee  all  the 
booty,  and  all  I  ask  of  thee  is  mine  own — flesh  of 
my  flesh." 


1 68  THE    LION   OP  JANINA 

The  unhappy  youth,  hearing  these  words,  fell  at 
All's  feet  and  embraced  his  knees,  wept,  covered  his 
hands  with  kisses,  and  implored  him  to  release  him 
—he  would  be  a  good  and  dutiful  son  to  him  ever 
afterwards. 

"  Thou  seest,  too,  how  much  he  loves  me,"  said 
Ali,  looking  with  tearful  eyes  at  Zaid  and  covering 
the  cowering  fugitive  with  his  long  gray  beard. 
"  Well,  Zaid,"  said  he,  "  so  thou  dost  now  fly  for 
refuge  beneath  the  shadow  of  that  same  gray  beard, 
by  grasping  which  thou  wert  minded  to  take  Ali's 
head  to  thy  mother,  eh  ?" 

Kleon  looked  at  Ali  Pasha  with  a  contemptuous 
smile.  Then  Ali  was  tender,  Ali  had  a  heart,  Ali's 
heart  ached  at  the  slaying  of  his  kinsfolk !  The 
Greek  felt  a  cruel  satisfaction  in  tormenting  the 
pasha. 

"  If  thou  dost  not  wish  to  see  Zaid  die,"  said  he, 
"depart  from  hence.  Alive  thou  shalt  not  have 
him  !" 

"  What !"  cried  Ali,  and,  standing  erect,  he  drew 
his  sword.  "  Because  my  beard  is  long  dost  thou 
think  thou  canst  trample  upon  me  ?  I  will  defend 
my  blood  with  my  blood,  and  will  perish  myself 
rather  than  let  him  be  slain.  Let  us  see,  mad  youth, 
wouldst  thou  lop  off  thine  own  right  hand  ?" 

Kleon  was  so  surprised  that  he  did  not  know 
what  to  do.  It  was  in  his  power  to  slay  Ali ;  but 
then  that  would  be  a  greater  triumph  for  Stambul 
than  all  the  victories  of  the  campaign. 

At  that  moment  a  herald  arrived  from  Odysseus 
with  a  command  for  Kleon  to  send  all  the  Turkish 
officers  captured  at  the  battle  of  Puld  to  Prevesa, 
that  they  might  be  exchanged  against  the  youths 


THE   AVENGER  169 

* 

of  the  sacred  army  who  had  been  captured  in  Mol- 
davia. 

Kleon's  pride  was  wounded  by  this  direct  com- 
mand. He  considered  himself  just  as  good  a  gen- 
eral as  Odysseus  or  Yprilanti,  and  did  not  recognize 
orders  sent  from  them. 

Turning  from  the  herald  to  Tepelenti,  he  thus  re- 
plied : 

"  Tell  Odysseus  that  I  and  my  soldiers  are  in  the 
habit  of  killing  the  enemy's  officers  on  the  battle- 
field. Only  one  of  them,  and  he  in  disguise,  re- 
mains. He,  however,  is  Tepelenti's  grandson,  who 
has  recognized  him  and  ransomed  him  from  me  for 
a  hundred  thousand  piastres,  which  he  has  engaged 
to  pay  me  within  an  hour.  Is  it  not  so,  Tepelenti  ?" 

"  It  is  so,"  said  Ali ;  "  within  an  hour  the  hundred 
thousand  piastres  shall  be  in  thy  hands." 

Zaid,  with  a  shriek  of  joy,  kissed  the  hem  of  his 
grandfather's  robe,  and  Kleon  gave  his  hand  upon 
the  bargain.  An  hour  later  the  money  arrived  in 
little  hogsheads,  and  he  had  it  weighed  in  the  pres- 
ence of  his  captains.  Ali,  however,  binding  his 
grandson  by  the  left  arm,  and  giving  him  his  own 
caftan,  had  him  conducted  into  the  fortress  of  Ja- 
nina. 

Kleon  looked  contemptuously  after  him.  So  the 
old  man  had  become  soft-hearted  !  How  he  had 
wept  and  supplicated  and  paid  for  this  youth,  who 
was  his  favorite  grandson  ! 

An  hour  later  the  roll  of  drums  was  heard  on  the 
bastions  of  Janina,  and  when  the  Greeks  looked  in 
that  direction  they  saw  the  stake  of  execution 
erected  there.  Four  black  executioners  were  carry- 
ing Zaid,  who  had  his  hands  tied  behind  his  back, 


1 70  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

and  was  wearing  the  self-same  caftan  which  Ali  had 
given  him.  Ali  himself,  mounted  on  a  black  horse, 
rode  right  up  to  the  stake.  At  a  signal  from  him 
the  executioners  hoisted  Zaid  into  the  air,  and  a 
moment  later  Tepelenti's  favorite  grandson,  whom 
he  had  dandled  so  often  on  his  knee,  was  done  to 
death  by  the  most  excruciating  torments  ! 

Ali  watched  his  death-agony  with  the  utmost 
sang-froid,  and,  when  all  was  over,  he  shouted  down 
from  the  bastions  with  a  strong,  firm  voice,  "  So 
perish  all  those  of  Tepelenti's  kinsfolk  who  draw 
the  sword  against  him  !  For  them  there  is  no 
mercy  !" 

Kleon  felt  his  heart's  blood  grow  cold.  Ah  !  he 
had  much,  very  much  to  learn  from  the  agonized 
cries  of  the  dying  before  he  could  overtake  Ali,  that 
old  man  who  weeps,  prays,  and  pays,  in  order  to 
rescue  his  favorite  grandson  for  the  sole  purpose  of 
killing  him  himself  with  refined  tortures  ! 

Of  all  Ali's  large  family  only  two  sons  now  re- 
mained, Sulaiman  and  Mukhtar.  They  were  the 
first  who  had  betrayed  their  father,  and  it  was  their 
treachery  that  had  wounded  him  most.  For  a 
whole  year  Ali  carried  that  wound  about  in  his 
heart.  During  that  time  nobody  was  allowed  to 
mention  the  names  of  his  sons  in  his  presence. 
Everything,  absolutely  everything,  which  reminded 
him  of  them  was  removed  from  the  fortress.  If 
any  one  was  weary  of  life,  he  had  only  to  mention 
the  name  of  Mukhtar  before  Ali,  and  death  was  a 
certainty. 

Meanwhile  the  two  apostate  sons  were  living  in 
great  misery  at  Adrianople  ;  for  the  Sultan,  though 
he  paid  them  for  their  treachery,  would  have  noth- 


THE   AVENGER  171 

ing  more  to  do  with  them.  The  first  instalment  of 
the  money  which  they  were  to  receive  as  the  price 
of  their  father's  blood  melted  away  very  rapidly  in 
merry  banquets,  pretty  female  slaves,  fine  steeds, 
and  precious  gems  ;  and  when  it  was  all  gone  the 
second  instalment  never  made  its  appearance.  Far 
different  and  far  more  important  personages  had 
still  stronger  claims  upon  the  Sultan's  purse.  Te- 
pelenti's  vigorous  resistance,  the  innumerable  losses 
suffered  by  the  Sultan's  armies,  buried  in  forgetful- 
ness  the  services  of  the  good  sons  whose  betrayal 
of  their  father  had  profited  the  Sultan  nothing. 
They  were  already  beginning  to  bitterly  repent 
their  overhasty  step  when  the  rumor  of  Ali's  vic- 
tories reached  them ;  and  as  the  days  of  necessity 
began  to  weigh  heavily  upon  them,  as  money  and 
wine  began  to  fail  them,  as  they  found  themselves 
obliged  to  sell,  one  by  one,  their  horses,  their  jewels, 
and,  at  last,  even  their  beautiful  slave-girls,  it  be- 
came quite  plain  to  them  that  no  help  could  be 
looked  for  from  any  quarter,  unless  perhaps  it  was 
from  wonder-working  fairies,  or  from  the  genii  of 
the  Thousand  and  One  Nights. 

But  let  none  say  that,  in  the  regions  of  the  merry 
Orient,  fairies  and  wonders  do  not  still  make  their 
home  among  men. 

Just  when  the  beys  had  consumed  the  price  of 
the  last  slave  they  had  to  sell,  such  wealth  poured 
in  upon  them,  in  heaps,  in  floods,  as  we  only  hear 
of  in  old  fairy  tales  ;  and  fairy  tales,  as  we  all  know 
very  well,  have  no  truth  in  them  at  all. 

One  day,  as  Ali  Pasha  was  walking  to  and  fro 
on  the  bastions  of  Janina,  he  perceived  among  the 


172  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

garden -beds  in  the  court-yard  below  a  gardener 
engaged  in  planting  tulips. 

Tepelenti  knew  all  the  servants  in  the  fortress 
thoroughly,  down  to  the  very  lowest.  He  not  only 
knew  them  by  name,  but  he  knew  what  they  had  to 
do  and  how  they  did  it. 

The  name  of  this  gardening  slave  was  Dirham, 
and  he  was  so  named  because,  many  years  before, 
Mukhtar  had  purchased  him  when  a  child  from  a 
slave-dealer  for  a  dirham,  and  although  his  master 
often  plagued  him,  he  nevertheless  cared  for  him 
well,  and  brought  him  up  and  provided  him  with 
all  manner  of  good  things.  Thus  Dirham,  when- 
ever his  master's  name  was  mentioned,  bethought 
him  how  little  he  was  worth  when  Mukhtar  Bey 
bought  him,  and  how  many  more  dirhams  he  was 
worth  now,  and  for  all  this  he  could  not  thank 
Mukhtar  enough. 

Ali  Pasha  for  a  long  time  watched  from  the 
bastions  this  man  planting  his  tulips.  Some  of 
them  he  pressed  down  into  the  ground  very  care- 
fully, strewing  them  with  loose  powdery  earth, 
preparing  a  proper  place  for  the  bulbs  beforehand, 
and  moistening  them  gently  with  watery  spray ; 
others  he  plumped  down  into  the  earth  anyhow, 
covering  them  up  very  perfunctorily,  and  never 
looking  to  see  whether  he  watered  them  too  much 
or  tpo  little. 

Ali  carefully  noted  those  bulbs  which  Dirham 
had  bestowed  the  greatest  pains  upon,  and  then 
went  down  and  entered  into  conversation  with 
him. 

"What  are  the  names  of  these  tulips?" 

Dirham  ticked  them  all  off :  King  George,  Tra- 


THE    AVENGER  173 

falgar,  Admiral  Gruithuysen,  Belle  Alliance,  etc., 
etc.  But  at  the  same  time  he  skipped  over  one  or 
two  here  and  there,  and  these  were  the  very  ones 
which  he  had  covered  up  with  the  greatest  care. 

"  Then  thou  dost  not  know  the  names  of  those 
others?"  inquired  Ali. 

"  I  have  lost  my  memoranda,  my  lord,  and  I  can- 
not remember  all  the  names  among  so  many." 

"  Look,  now,  I  know  the  names  of  these  flowers. 
This  is  Sulaiman,  that  over  there  is  Mukhtar  Bey." 

Dirham  cast  himself  on  his  face  before  the  pasha. 
Ali  had  guessed  well.  Dirham  remembered  the 
two  gentlemen  just  as  a  good  dog  remembers  his 
master — they  were  ever  in  his  mind. 

The  wretched  man  fully  expected  that  Ali  would 
immediately  tear  these  bulbs  out  of  the  ground  and 
plant  his  own  head  there  in  their  place. 

Instead  of  that  Ali  graciously  raised  him  from 
the  ground  and  said  to  him  in  a  tender,  sympathetic 
voice,  "  Fear  not,  Dirham  !  Thou  hast  no  need  to 
be  ashamed  of  such  noble  sentiments.  Thou  art 
thinking  of  my  sons.  And  dost  thou  suppose  that  I 
never  think  of  them  ?  I  have  forbidden  every  one 
in  the  fortress  to  even  mention  their  names  ;  but 
what  does  that  avail  me  if  I  cannot  prevent  myself 
from  thinking  of  them  ?  What  avails  it  to  never 
hear  their  names  if  I  see  their  faces  constantly 
before  me?  The  world  says  they  have  betrayed 
me  ;  but  I  do  not  believe,  I  cannot  believe  it.  What 
says  Dirham  ?  Is  it  possible  that  children  can  be- 
tray their  own  father  ?" 

Dirham  took  his  courage  in  both  hands  and  vent- 
ured to  reply  : 

"  Strike  off  my  head  if  you  will,  my  lord,  but  this 


174  THE    LION    OF    JANINA 

I  say — they  were  not  traitors,  but  were  themselves 
betrayed  ;  for  even  if  it  were  possible  for  sons  to 
betray  their  father,  Tepelenti's  children  would  not 
betray  Tepelenti." 

Ali  Pasha  gave  Dirham  a  purse  of  gold  for  these 
words,  commanding  him,  at  the  same  time,  to  ap- 
pear before  him  in  the  palace  that  evening,  and  to 
bring  with  him,  carefully  transplanted  into  pots, 
those  tulips  which  bore  the  names  of  Sulaiman  and 
Mukhtar. 

Dirham  could  scarcely  wait  for  the  evening  to 
come,  and  the  moment  he  appeared  in  Ali's  halls 
he  was  admitted  into  the  pasha's  presence.  Then 
Ali  bade  every  one  withdraw  from  the  room,  that 
they  twain  might  remain  together,  and  began  to 
talk  with  him  confidentially. 

"I  hear  that  my  sons  are  living  in  great  poverty 
at  Adrianople.  As  to  their  poverty,  I  say  nothing  ; 
but,  worse  still,  they  are  living  in  great  humiliation 
also.  Nobody  will  have  anything  to  do  with  them. 
The  wretched  Spahis,  who  once  on  a  time  men- 
tioned their  names  with  chattering  teeth,  now 
mock  at  them  when  they  meet  them  in  the  street, 
and  when  they  go  on  foot  to  the  bazaar  to  buy 
their  bread,  the  women  cry  with  a  loud  voice,  'Are 
these,  then,  the  heroes  at  whom  Stambul  used  to 
tremble?'  Verily  it  is  shameful,  and  Ali  Pasha 
blushes  thereat.  I  know  that  if  once  I  ever  place 
in  their  hands  those  good  swords  which  I  bound 
upon  their  thighs  they  would  not  surrender  them 
so  readily  to  the  enemies  of  Ali  Pasha.  What  says 
Dirham  ?" 

Dirham  was  only  able  to  express  his  approval  of 
Ali's  words  by  a  very  audible  sigh. 


THE    AVENGER  175 

"  Hearken,  Dirham  !  I  have  known  for  a  long  time 
a  secret,  which  I  will  venture  to  confide  to  thee." 

"  'Twill  be  as  though  you  buried  it  under  the 
earth,  my  master." 

"  In  the  Gulf  of  Durazzo  there  lies  at  anchor  an 
English  vessel,  under  the  command  of  Captain 
Morrison.  On  that  ship  I  have  deposited  five  mill- 
ions of  piastres  in  gold — not  less  than  five  millions. 
A  large  amount,  eh  !  At  any  moment  I  like  I  can 
blow  the  fortress  of  Janina  into  the  air,  embark  on 
board  that  ship,  and  sail  away  to  England  or  Spain, 
and  there  I  can  live  in  a  lordly  fashion  without 
care,  just  as  I  please.  But  to  what  purpose?  My 
remaining  days  are  but  few.  Why  should  I  try  to 
save  them  ?  Here  I  must  perish.  Here,  where  I 
have  grown  great,  it  becomes  me  to  die,  and  it  is 
not  for  me  to  retreat  before  the  advancing  sword. 
This  money  must  serve  another  design  of  mine, 
which  has  been  in  my  mind  long  since,  but  I  seek  a 
man  capable  of  executing  it. 

"Thou  shalt  be  that  man.  Falter  not.  Fate 
does  great  things  with  little  ones.  Thou  shalt  go 
from  Janina  and  pass  through  Gaskho  Bey's  army. 
When  thou  dost  arrive  at  Durazzo,  show  Morrison 
this  ring.  When  he  sees  it  he  will  do  everything 
thou  sayest  to  him,  for  he  will  know  that  these  are 
my  commands.  Thou  wilt  have  the  anchor  raised 
and  sail  with  the  first  favorable  wind  to  Stambul. 
Sail  not  into  the  Golden  Horn,  for  it  will  be  more 
difficult  to  get  out  of  it  again,  but  cast  thy  anchor 
hard  by  Anadoli  Hissar.  There  thou  wilt  land, 
and,  taking  with  thee  a  hundred  thousand  piastres, 
thou  wilt  put  them  in  sacks  of  chaff,  the  chaff  being 
on  the  top,  and  lading  sundry  asses  with  the  sacks, 


176  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

thou  wilt  take  them  to  Adrianople.  There  thou 
wilt  seek  out  my  sons,  and,  humbly  kissing  the  hem 
of  their  garments,  give  them  to  understand  that  I 
have  sent  thee.  Then  thou  wilt  tell  them  of  the 
warfare  waged  around  Janina,  all  that  thou  thyself 
hast  seen  and  heard.  If  from  their  faces  thou  seest 
that  they  receive  thy  words  coldly,  and  show  no 
ardor  of  soul,  then  measure  out  to  them  the  hun- 
dred thousand  piastres,  and  bid  them  buy  and  keep 
shop  therewith,  start  a  large  wholesale  business  if 
they  feel  any  disposition  that  way,  and  apply  them- 
selves diligently  to  heap  up  riches  upon  riches,  as  it 
becomes  honest  men  to  do  who  have  long  years  to 
live.  But  if  thou  seest  their  face  aflame  and  the 
heroes'  love  of  glory  sparkle  in  their  eyes ;  if  they 
listen  to  thy  words  with  parted  lips  and  throbbing 
hearts  ;  if  they  press  thy  hand  warmly  and  fre- 
quently clutch  the  hilts  of  their  swords ;  if  they 
ask  thee  to  tell  them  again  and  again  what  thou 
hast  told  them  already — then  tell  them  that  the 
path  of  glory  and  Tepelenti's  arms  are  always  open 
before  them,  that  those  one  hundred  thousand  pias- 
tres are  only  for  buying  horses  and  weapons.  I 
have  five  times  as  much  on  board  the  English  ship, 
and  five  hundred  times  as  much  in  the  red  tower 
of  Janina.  With  the  five  millions  of  piastres  they 
must  get  ships,  and  these  ships  they  must  fully 
equip  in  secret.  And  this  will  not  be  difficult,  for 
all  the  Greek  seamen  have  deserted  the  Turkish 
fleet.  These  Greeks  will  offer  their  services  gratis. 
When  the  ships  are  ready,  let  them,  through  thee, 
inform  thereof  Bublinia,  the  heroic  Greek  amazon, 
who  is  cruising  off  Crete  with  thirty  vessels  to  di- 
vert the  attention  of  the  Turkish  fleet,  and  then 


THE   AVENGER  177 

row  out  to  Beikos.  With  favorable  weather  thou 
shouldst  get  to  Durazzo  in  ten  days.  Simultane- 
ously, I  from  one  quarter,  Kleon  from  a  second, 
and  Odysseus  from  a  third  will  attack  the  army  of 
Gaskho  Bey,  and  if  my  sons  are  victorious  at  sea, 
in  the  evening  of  the  same  day  we  shall  be  able  to 
rest  in  one  another's  arms." 

Dirham  wept  like  a  child. 

The  pasha  continued  his  directions  : 

"At  every  step  be  cautious.  Accomplish  every- 
thing amidst  the  greatest  secrecy.  Don't  let  my 
sons  scatter  their  money  right  and  left,  lest  their 
wealth  be  suspected  and  give  rise  to  envy  and  jeal- 
ousy. It  would  be  better  if  they  left  the  bulk  of  it 
on  board  ship,  and  only  drew  from  it  whatever  may 
be  necessary  for  the  time  being.  When  thou  dost 
communicate  with  Bublinia,  write  on  the  parch- 
me.it  all  sorts  of  different  things  higgledy-piggledy. 
Say,  for  instance,  that  thou  art  disembarking  wool 
in  Crete,  and  will  consign  it  to  Argyrocantharides, 
who  is  friendly  with  the  Sultan  and  all  the  pashas, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  an  intermediary  between  us 
and  the  Greeks.  But  in  the  empty  spaces  between 
the  lines  let  Mukhtar  write  the  message  for  Bubli- 
nia in  special  characters  with  oil  of  vitriol ;  then, 
when  thou  dost  hand  over  the  documents,  moisten 
these  special  rows  of  letters  with  a  piece  of  citron. 
But  stay,  I  will  give  thee  a  still  better  counsel. 
Melt  some  lunar  caustic  in  water,  and  write  there- 
with thy  message  on  the  shell  of  hard-boiled  eggs. 
Then  boil  the  eggs  again ;  and  when  thou  dost 
break  them  open  thou  wilt  find  the  writing  visible 
on  the  white  membrane  inside.  Do  that.  Eggs  are 
the  least  suspicious  of  cargoes." 


178  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

Dirham  made  a  careful  mental  note  of  all  that 
was  told  him,  secretly  amazed  that  All  Pasha 
should  have  extended  his  attention  to  the  smallest 
details. 

"  One  thing  more,"  said  Ali,  and  his  voice  trem- 
bled with  emotion.  "  I  know  right  well  that  I  am 
giving  my  sons  dangerous  parts  to  play,  and  the 
issue  thereof  is  uncertain.  Take,  therefore,  this 
ring  ;  the  stone  set  in  it  contains  a  talisman.  Give 
it  to  Mukhtar.  Let  him  wear  it  on  his  finger,  and 
if  ever  he  finds  himself  environed  by  a  great  dan- 
ger, a  very  great  danger — which  Allah  forfend  ! — 
then  let  him  open  the  stone  of  the  ring  and  read 
the  talisman  engraved  therein.  But  this  he  is  only 
to  do  if  a  great  danger  be  at  hand,  when  he  trembles 
for  his  life,  when  the  lowest  slave  would  not  change 
heads  with  him  ;  for  when  once  it  has  been  read 
the  talisman  loses  all  its  virtue.  And  now  depart, 
and  bethink  thee  of  all  I  have  told  thee." 

Dirham  kissed  the  hem  of  the  pasha's  garment 
and  promised  that  he  would  carefully  perform  every- 
thing. Ali  accompanied  him  down  into  the  garden. 
On  their  way  back  to  the  place  they  had  to  cross 
the  spot  where  Zaid  was  buried.  As  the  hollow 
earth  resounded  beneath  Ali's  feet,  he  stopped  for 
a  moment  and  murmured  to  himself,  "  H'm  !  thou 
shalt  not  be  the  only  one  !" 

Two  weeks  later  Dirham  met  the  sons  of  Ali  in 
Adrianople.  Morrison's  ship  had  taken  him  on  the 
way  thither,  and  during  the  voyage  Dirham  had 
countless  opportunities  of  convincing  himself  that 
the  money  deposited  by  Ali  was  safely  guarded  in 
the  hold  of  the  vessel.  There  he  said  everything 


THE    AVENGER  179 

which  Ali  had  confided  to  him,  and  as  it  seemed  to 
the  poor  servant,  through  the  medium  of  his  tearful 
eyes,  as  if  the  beys  grew  enthusiastic  at  the  tidings 
of  the  war  which  their  aged  father  was  waging,  he 
told  them,  in  this  persuasion,  that  Ali  had  sent  them 
five  million  piastres,  that  they  might  buy  ships  and 
collect  arms  and  unite  their  forces  to  his. 

The  beys  rejoiced  greatly  at  the  tidings  of  the 
five  millions,  and  embraced  Dirham,  who  did  his 
best  to  attribute  all  the  merit  of  the  deed  to  Tepe- 
lenti  for  sending  the  money  so  magnanimously. 

"The  old  man  might  have  sent  us  still  more,v 
said  Sulaiman.  "What  does  he  want  with  it  in 
Janina?  Sooner  or  later  it  will  become  the  prey 
of  his  enemies." 

"  Pardon  me,  my  lord  !"  objected  Dirham.  "  It 
will  become  nobody's  prey  if  only  you  unite  with 
him." 

"Ugh  !"  said  Sulaiman  ;  and  at  that  moment  the 
two  brothers  caught  each  other's  eye,  and  it  was  as 
though  the  same  thought  suddenly  occurred  to  them 
both. 

When  Dirham  delivered  the  ring  to  Mukhtar,  the 
latter  asked,  suspiciously : 

"  Is  there  any  poison  in  this  ring  ?" 

"  What  are  you  thinking  of,  my  lord  ?  I  wore  it 
on  my  finger  the  whole  way  hither.  There  is  a 
talisman  in  it." 

At  this  both  the  brothers  burst  out  laughing. 
They  had  often  ridiculed  Ali  for  his  absurd  super- 
stition. Nevertheless,  Mukhtar  kept  the  ring,  for 
there  was  a  splendid  emerald  in  it. 

But  the  secret  of  the  eggs  completely  won  the 
favor  of  the  brothers.  That  was  really  a  capital 


180  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

idea  of  All's.  In  this  way  the  pashas  could  send 
secret  messages  even  in  their  harems.  Who  would 
ever  suspect  an  egg?  They  would  put  it  to  the 
proof  at  once.  They  would  send  a  declaration  of 
love  to  the  odalisks  of  the  Seraskier,  written  in  an 

egg- 

Dirham  shook  his  head  and  spoke  seriously,  and 
entreated  the  beys  to  first  of  all  enter  into  a  league 
with  Bublinia,  the  amazon  of  Chios,  who  was  even 
bold  enough  on  occasions  to  make  a  dash  at  the 
Dardanelles  ;  for  if  they  did  not  hasten,  the  money 
that  had  been  sent  to  them  would  be  of  no  use.  It 
would  be  dangerous,  he  urged,  to  show  the  people 
of  Adrianople  that  they  had  received  money.  The 
English  captain,  moreover,  was  not  disposed  to 
render  any  other  service  than  that  of  keeping  safe 
custody  of  the  money  confided  to  him  ;  but  if  any 
harm  happened  to  them  because  of  it,  he  would 
neither  defend  them  nor  even  convey  them  out  of 
Turkish  waters. 

These  wise  remonstrances  made  some  impression 
upon  the  beys.  Just  as  if  their  thoughts  were  pur- 
suing the  same  course,  they  both  hastened  to  beg 
Dirham  to  let  them  have  at  once  the  eggs,  the  lunar 
caustic,  writing  materials,  and  all  other  indispensable 
things.  Moreover,  they  forgot  to  give  him  money 
for  these  purchases,  so  the  poor  fellow  had  to  buy 
them  out  of  his  own  purse. 

Dirham's  foot  was  scarcely  out  of  the  house 
when  the  two  brothers  looked  at  each  other  and 
smiled. 

"  I  have  a  good  idea,"  began  Sulaiman. 

"And  I  also,"  said  the  other. 

"I  don't  mean  to  return  to  AH." 


THE    AVENGER  l8l 

"  Nor  I,     I  bear  in  mind  what  happened  to  Zaid." 

"  I  propose  we  buy  a  ship,  on  which  we  may  hide 
our  money." 

"  And  we'll  man  her  with  a  Greek  crew." 

"  Then  we  will  send  Dirham  with  the  messages 
written  in  the  eggs  to  Bublinia,  and  we'll  write 
great  things  therein.  We'll  tell  her  that  we  stand 
ready  here  with  our  fleets,  and  if  she  will  attack  the 
Kapudan  Pasha  in  front  we  will  attack  him  in  the 
rear.  The  woman  is  mad.  She  will  come  forth 
from  the  Archipelago  and  fall  upon  the  Turkish 
fleet.  Then  the  Kapudan  Pasha  will  assemble  his 
forces  against  her,  and  she  will  engage  all  his  atten- 
tion till  we  have  nicely  set  sail,  nor  will  we  stop  till 
we  reach  Cadiz." 

"  Admirable  !  for  that  is  the  land  of  good  wine 
and  fair  women." 

"And  then  AH  Pasha  may  wait  for  us  till  the 
angel  Izrafil  blows  his  trumpet  on  the  last  day  !" 

"  And  Bublinia  as  well — not  forgetting  the  Sultan  ! 
Let  them  worry  each  other." 

"  Mashallah  !     Life  is  sweet  !" 

And  so  it  chanced  that  the  sons  of  Ali,  like  the 
princes  in  a  fairy  tale,  suddenly  and  marvellously 
came  into  the  possession  of  great  riches,  and  were 
wise  enough  to  profit  by  these  riches  in  the  merri- 
est manner  in  the  world.  The  money  was  given  to 
them  for  blood  and  weapons.  They  were  going  to 
lavish  it  on  love  and  wine.  And  is  not  life  lovelier 
so  ? 

When  Dirham  came  back  they  immediately  boiled 
the  eggs  hard,  and  wrote  upon  them  every  sort  of 
magnificent  message  that  occurred  to  their  minds. 
They  promised  to  hasten  to  the  assistance  of  the 


l82  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

Greeks,  both  by  land  and  by  sea ;  to  cut  their  way 
through  the  fleets  with  their  fire-ships  and  blow  the 
Turkish  flag-ship  into  the  air  ;  to  incite  the  Janis- 
saries to  rise  against  the  Sultan  and  the  Greeks  to 
rise  against  the  Janissaries  ;  in  all  of  which  there 
was  not  a  single  word  of  truth.  Only  worthy  Dir- 
ham  believed  these  things,  and  trembled  in  body 
and  soul  at  the  bare  thought  of  the  sublime  deeds 
that  his  masters  had  determined  to  perform. 

He  himself  hired  a  barge,  loaded  it  with  wool, 
and,  hiding  the  eggs  full  of  secrets  in  a  basket,  set 
out  for  the  Archipelago. 

The  good  youths  meanwhile  laughed  to  their 
hearts'  content.  They  laughed  at  worthy  Dirham  ; 
they  laughed  at  the  worthy  Bublinia,  and  at  the 
wise  Kapudan  Pasha  ;  they  laughed  at  this  amus- 
ing piece  of  good  fortune  which  brought  them 
riches  in  heaps.  But  at  nobody  did  they  laugh  so 
much  as  at  old  Tepelenti,  who  was  believing  all 
along  that  his  sons  were  collecting  war-ships  for 
him. 

But  did  he  really  believe  it  ? 

On  the  same  day  that  Dirham  quitted  Adrianople, 
a  fakir  of  the  Nimetullahita  Order  penetrated  into 
the  Seraglio  and  demanded  an  audience  of  the  Sul- 
tan. It  was  the  self-same  old  soothsayer  who  had 
exhibited  his  enchantments  to  AH. 

On  being  admitted  to  the  presence  of  Mahmoud, 
he  stood  audaciously  upright  before  him,  bending 
his  head  no  lower  than  it  was  already  crooked  by 
the  weight  of  years. 

"Allah  hath  sent  me  to  thee,"  said  the  dervish,  in 
a  deep,  hollow  voice,  which  had  lost  all  its  sonorous- 
ness. "A  great  danger  is  approaching  thee.  The 


THE    AVENGER  183 

storm  hanging  over  thy  head  is  at  this  moment 
compressed  within  the  skin  of  an  egg,  and  thou 
couldst  crush  it  in  the  palm  of  thy  hand  ;  but  if 
thou  dost  suffer  it  to  come  forth  from  the  egg,  thy 
whole  realm  will  not  be  sufficient  to  contain  it. 
This,  therefore,  is  the  word  of  Allah  unto  thee : 
This  day  and  this  night,  and  to-morrow  and  to- 
morrow night,  stop  every  vessel  which  sails  up  the 
narrow  waters  of  the  Golden  Horn  and  search 
them,  and  whenever  thy  guards  come  upon  an  egg, 
let  them  seize  it  and  bring  it  to  thee  ;  for  amongst 
them  are  diverse  cockatrice  eggs  which,  if  once 
they  be  hatched,  will  swallow  up"  both  thee  and 
thy  realm." 

Having  said  these  words,  the  dervish  turned  him 
about,  and  without  so  much  as  saluting  the  Padi- 
shah, without  even  taking  off  his  slippers  before  him, 
he  withdrew,  not  even  asking  for  a  reward. 

The  Sultan  was  profoundly  impressed  by  this  au- 
dacity. He  immediately  sent  orders  to  the  war- 
dens of  the  two  watch-towers  at  the  entrance  of  the 
Golden  Horn  to  board  and  search  thoroughly  every 
vessel  that  passed  between  them,  seize  every  egg 
they  found  on  board  and  bring  them  to  him,  at  the 
same  time  detaining  all  the  crews  of  such  vessels. 

Fate  so  willed  it  that  Dirham's  was  the  first  ves- 
sel that  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  searchers. 

When  the  unfortunate  servant  perceived  that  the 
guards  seized  the  eggs,  he  leaped  into  the  sea,  and 
although  he  was  a  good  swimmer,  he  allowed  him- 
self to  be  suffocated  in  the  water  lest  he  should  be 
compelled  to  betray  his  masters. 

The  eggs  they  carried  to  the  Sultan,  and  when 
he  had  opened  them  and  had  read  the  writing  writ- 


184  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

ten  on  their  inner  skins,  he  was  horrified.  Treach- 
ery and  rebellion  !  The  conspiracy  was  spreading 
from  one  end  of  the  empire  to  the  other.  The  com- 
plicated intrigue,  one  of  whose  threads  was  in  Ja- 
nina  and  the  other  in  the  islands  of  the  Archipel- 
ago, had  its  third  in  the  very  capital.  This  called 
for  terrible  reprisals. 

The  beys  were  seized  the  same  night  in  the  midst 
of  their  joys,  and  dragged  from  the  paradise  of  their 
hopes  to  be  thrown  into  a  dungeon. 

Who  could  have  betrayed  the  secret  of  the  eggs  ? 
they  asked  themselves.  Why,  who  else  but  Tepe- 
lenti  ?  * 

Fools !  to  fancy  that  they  could  make  a  fool  of 
Tepelenti ! 

Sulaiman  fainted  when  they  informed  him  that 
the  secret  of  the  eggs  was  discovered.  Mukhtar 
felt  that  the  moment  had  come  of  which  Ali  had 
said  that  the  lowest  slave  would  not  then  exchange 
heads  with  his  two  sons,  and  in  that  hour  of  peril 
he  bethought  him  of  the  talismanic  ring  which  had 
been  sent  to  him.  Hastily  he  removed  the  emerald, 
believing  that  at  least  a  quickly  operative  poison 
was  contained  therein,  by  which  he  might  be  saved 
from  a  shameful  death.  There  was,  however,  no 
poison  inside  the  ring,  but  these  words  were  en- 
graved thereon,  "Ye  have  fallen  into  the  hands  of 
Ali !" 

Mukhtar  dropped  the  ring  ;  he  was  annihilated. 

The  hand  of  Ali,  that  implacable  hand  which 
reached  from  one  end  of  the  world  to  the  other, 
which  clutched  at  him  even  out  of  the  tomb — he 
now  felt  all  its  weight  upon  his  head. 

Die  he  must,  and  his  brother  also. 


THE    AVENGER  185 

The  Reis  -  Effendi  examined  them,  and  both  of 
them  doggedly  denied  all  knowledge  of  what  was 
written  on  the  eggs.  But  there  was  one  thing  they 
could  not  deny  —  the  five  million  piastres  on  the 
English  ship ;  this  was  the  most  damaging  piece 
of  evidence  against  them,  and  proved  to  be  their 
ruin. 

The  Sultan  demanded  from  Morrison  the  money 
of  the  beys,  and  Morrison  himself  appeared  before 
the  Reis-Effendi  to  defend  his  consignment,  which 
he  maintained  he  was  only  bound  to  deliver  to  its 
lawful  owner. 

The  Reis  -  Effendi  replied  that  in  the  Ottoman 
Empire  there  was  only  one  lawful  owner  of  every 
sort  of  property,  and  that  was  the  Sultan.  The 
property  of  every  deceased  person  fell  to  the  Grand 
Signior,  and  nobody  could  make  a  will  without  his 
permission. 

Morrison  objected,  very  pertinently,  that  as  the 
beys  were  not  deceased  the  Sultan  could  scarcely 
be  looked  upon  as  their  heir. 

Instead  of  making  any  answer,  the  Reis-Effendi 
sent  out  his  officers  with  a  little  piece  of  parchment 
which  he  had  previously  subscribed,  and  a  few  mo- 
ments later  the  severed  heads  of  the  beys  stood  in 
front  of  Morrison  on  a  silver  trencher. 

"  If  their  not  being  dead  was  the  sole  impedi- 
ment," remarked  the  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs, 
"  you  perceive  that  it  has  now  been  removed." 

Morrison  thereupon  handed  over  all  the  gold  and 
silver  in  his  possession  as  rapidly  as  possible,  and 
quitted  Constantinople  that  very  hour ;  he  had  no 
great  love  of  a  place  where  every  word  cost  the  life 
of  a  man. 


1 86  THE    LION    OF  JANINA 

But  the  heads  of  the  beys  were  stuck  on  the 
gates  of  the  Seraglio  for  three  days  and  three 
nights  in  the  sight  of  all  the  people,  and  mounted 
heralds  proclaimed,  at  intervals  of  an  hour,  "  Be- 
hold the  heads  of  the  sons  of  the  rebellious  AH  Te- 
pelenti,  who  would  have  devastated  Stambul !" 

And  the  people  loaded  the  heads  with  curses  each 
time  the  proclamation  was  made. 

A  few  days  later  the  news  reached  Janina  that 
Sulaiman  Bey  and  Mukhtar  Bey  had  been  beheaded 
at  Stambul. 

AH  Pasha  thrice  bowed  his  face  to  the  ground 
and  gave  thanks  to  Allah  for  His  mercie's.  And  he 
caused  to  be  proclaimed  on  the  ramparts,  amidst  a 
flourish  of  trumpets,  that  his  sons,  the  treacherous 
beys,  had  been  decapitated  at  Stambul.  Such  is  the 
reward  of  traitors  ! 

After  that,  for  three  days  and  three  nights — just 
as  long  a  time  as  the  heads  of  the  beys  had  been 
exposed  on  the  gates  of  the  Seraglio — a  banquet, 
with  music  and  dancing,  was  given  in  the  fortress 
of  Janina,  and  every  morning  a  hundred  and  one 
volleys  were  fired  from  the  bastions — the  usual  cere- 
mony after  great  triumphs. 

And  when  in  the  evening  AH  took  a  promenade 
in  his  garden,  and  walked  up  and  down  among  his 
flowers,  he  would  now  and  then  trample  the  earth 
beneath  his  feet.  It  was  the  grave  of  Zaid  that  he 
was  trampling  upon.  There  stood  an  old  dahlia, 
the  sole  survivor  of  its  extirpated  family,  and,  level- 
ling it  to  the  ground  with  his  foot,  he  trod  it  into 
the  grave,  murmuring  to  himself,  "  No  longer  art 
thou  alone — no  longer  alone  !" 


CHAPTER  XI 
THE   FLOWERS   OP   THE   GARDEN   OF   BEGTASH 

AT  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century,  when  the 
Turkish  crescent  had  won  an  abiding-place  among 
the  constellations  of  Europe,  there  dwelt  in  the 
Turkish  dominions  a  worthy  dervish,  Haji  Beg- 
tash  by  name. 

As  the  overflowing  armies  of  the  newly  founded 
empire  submerged  the  surrounding  Christian  king- 
doms, Haji  Begtash  went  everywhere  with  the  con- 
quering hosts,  but  in  the  intervals  of  peace  he  begged 
his  way  about  the  empire,  and  scraped  together  a 
little  money  from  the  Turkish  grandees  or  from  the 
extravagant,  booty-laden  Turkish  soldiers. 

Now  wherefore  did  this  worthy  dervish  make  it  a 
point  to  collect  so  much  money  and  wear  himself 
out  by  travelling  from  the  Adriatic  to  the  Euxine, 
when  he  might  have  sat  all  day  long  at  the  gate  of 
the  Kaaba,  as  they  call  the  stone  on  the  tomb  of  the 
Prophet,  and  recited  from  his  long  bead-string  the 
nine  properties  of  Allah  (no  very  exhausting  labor, 
by-the-way),  and  received  therefor,  from  the  pil- 
grims to  the  shrine,  meat,  drink,  and  abundance  of 
alms? 

Well,  Haji  Begtash  had  taken  up  a  great  work. 
When  he  accompanied  the  Turkish  armies,  and  they, 
on  entering  a  Cftristian  village,  began  to  cut  down 


l88  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

the  inhabitants  and  tie  the  captives  together  with 
ropes,  the  dervish  would  force  his  way  through  the 
bloodthirsty  soldiery,  and  if  he  beheld  any  wild  Bash- 
kir or  Kurdish  desperado  about  to  dash  out  the  brains 
of  a  forsaken,  weeping  orphan  child  against  a  wall, 
he  would  lay  his  hand  upon  them,  take  away  the 
child,  cover  it  with  his  mantle,  caress  it,  and  take  it 
away  with  him.  And  thus  he  would  keep  on  doing 
till  he  had  with  him  a  whole  group  of  children,  all 
of  whom  were  concealed  beneath  the  folds  of  his 
ample  cloak,  where  nobody  could  hurt  them  ;  nay,  fre- 
quently he  would  carry  babies  in  swaddling-clothes  in 
his  bosom,  till  people  began  to  wonder  what  on  earth 
he  meant  to  do  with  them. 

Subsequently  he  announced  that  any  captive  who 
brought  him  his  children  should  receive  a  silver  de- 
narius per  head  for  each  one  of  them.  This  was  not 
much,  it  is  true  ;  but  then  there  was  little  demand 
for  children.  In  the  slave-market  only  the  adult 
human  animal  had  its  price-current.  And  so  it  came 
about  that  innumerable  children  were  brought  to 
the  worthy  dervish. 

He  took  them  away  with  him  to  a  mosque  at 
Adrianople.  Folks  laughed  at  him,  and  asked  him 
mockingly  if  he  was  going  to  plant  a  garden  with 
them. 

Haji  Begtash  accepted  the  jest  in  real  earnest, 
and  called  his  children  the  flowers  of  Begtash's 
garden ;  and.  this  name  they  preserved  in  the  com- 
ing centuries. 

These  saplings  (amongst  them  were  some  of  the 
loveliest  little  creatures  of  six  and  seven  years  of 
age)  were  brought  up  by  the  indefatigable  Haji 
year  after  year.  He  instructed  them  in  the  Ku- 


THE    FLOWERS   OF  THE    GARDEN   OF  BEGTASH    189 

ran  ;  he  told  them  everything  concerning  the  innu- 
merable and  ineffable  joys  which  the  Prophet  prom- 
ises to  those  who  fall  in  the  defence  of  the  true  Faith  ; 
and  at  the  same  time  accustomed  them  to  endure 
all  the  hardships  and  privations  of  this  earthly  life. 

Most  of  these  children  had  never  known  father  or 
mother,  and  those  who  had  quickly  forgot  all  about 
them  as  they  grew  up.  No  love  of  home  or  kindred 
bound  them  to  this  world,  and  therefore  they  were 
all  the  more  attached  to  one  another.  Their  com- 
rades were  the  only  beings  they  learned  to  love,  and 
every  one  of  them  treated  old  Begtash  as  a  father. 
His  words  were  sacred  to  them. 

Their  days  were  passed  in  hard  work,  in  perpetual 
martial  exercises,  fighting,  and  swimming.  A  youth 
of  twelve  among  them  was  capable  of  coping  with 
full-grown  men  elsewhere,  and  each  one  of  them  at 
maturity  was  a  veritable  Samson. 

In  those  days  the  Ottoman  armies  suffered  many 
defeats  from  the  Christian  arms.  Their  strength 
lay  for  the  most  part  in  their  cavalry,  but  their  in- 
numerable infantry  was  a  mere  mob,  two  of  their 
foot-soldiers  not  being  equal  to  one  of  the  well-dis- 
ciplined European  men-at-arms  who  advanced  irre- 
sistibly against  them  in  huge  compact  masses  ;  and 
they  were  of  no  use  at  all  in  sieges,  except  to  fill  up 
the  ditches  and  trenches  with  their  dead  bodies,  and 
thus  make  a  road  for  the  more  valiant  warriors  that 
came  after  them. 

And  now,  as  if  by  magic,  a  little  band  of  infantry 
suddenly  appeared  on  the  theatre  of  the  war.  These 
new  soldiers  were  dressed  quite  differently  from  the 
others.  On  their  heads  they  wore  a  high  hat  bulg- 
ing outward  in  front,  with  a  black,  floating  cock's 


1 90  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

plume  on  the  top  of  it ;  their  dolmans  were  of  em- 
broidered blue  cloth  ;  their  hose  only  reached  down 
to  their  knees,  below  that  the  whole  leg  was  bare  ; 
their  only  weapon  was  a  short,  broad,  roundish 
sword,  in  marked  contrast  to  the  other  Turkish  sol- 
diers, who  loaded  themselves  with  as  many  weapons 
as  if  they  were  going  to  fight  with  ten  hands. 

None  recognized  the  youths — and  youths  they  all 
were.  They  did  not  mingle  with  the  other  squad- 
rons, nor  place  themselves  under  any  captain,  nor 
did  they  ask  for  pay  from  any  one. 

But  in  the  very  first  engagement  they  showed 
what  they  were  made  of.  A  fortress  had  to  be  be- 
sieged which  was  defended  in  front  by  a  broad  stream 
of  water.  The  strange  youths  clinched  their  broad 
swords  between  their  teeth,  swam  across  the  water, 
scaled  the  bastions  amidst  fire  and  flames,  and  plant- 
ed the  first  horse-tail  crescent  on  the  tower. 

These  were  the  flowers  of  Begtash's  garden. 

The  first  battle  established  the  fame  of  the  youth- 
ful band  that  had  been  brought  up  by  the  old  der- 
vish, and  by  the  time  the  second  campaign  began, 
Haji  Begtash  was  already  the  chief  of  innumerable 
monasteries  whose  inmates  were  called  the  Brethren 
of  the  Order  of  Begtash.  Consisting,  as  they  did, 
of  captive  Christian  children,  and  standing  under 
the  immediate  command  of  the  Sultan,  they  com- 
posed a  new  army  of  infantry,  the  fame  of  whose 
valor  filled  the  whole  world. 

These  were  the  "  jeni-cheri "  (new  soldiers),  which 
name  was  subsequently  altered  into  Janichary  or 
Janissary.  But  for  long  ages  to  come,  if  any  Janis- 
sary warrior  had  a  mind  to  speak  haughtily,  he  would 
call  himself  "a  flower  from  Begtash's  garden." 


THE    FLOWERS   OF   THE    GARDEN   OF    BEGTASH    191 

Many  a  glorious  name  bloomed  in  this  garden  in 
the  course  of  the  ages.  The  power  of  the  Sultan 
rested  on  their  shoulders,  and  if  they  shook  the 
Sultan  from  off  their  shoulders,  down  he  had  to  go. 

If  they  were  powerful  servants,  they  were  also 
powerful  tyrants.  Their  valor  often  reaped  a  har- 
vest of  victories,  but  their  obstinacy  again  and  again 
imperilled  their  triumphs.  With  the  increase  of 
their  power  their  self-assurance  increased  likewise. 
It  was  not  so  much  the  Sultans  and  Viziers  who 
commanded  them  as  they  who  commanded  the 
Sultans  and  Viziers.  And  if  the  rebellious  Janis- 
saries hoisted  on  the  Atmeidan  a  kettle,  the  signal 
of  revolt,  it  was  always  with  fear  and  trembling 
that  the  Seraglio  asked  them  what  were  their  de- 
mands ;  and  the  whole  Divan  breathed  more  freely 
when  the  answer  came  that  it  was  gold  they  want- 
ed, and  not  blood — the  blood  of  their  officers.  And 
when,  after  the  great  Feast  of  Bairam,  there  was 
the  usual  distribution  of  pilaf,  and  the  dangerous 
kettles  were  filled  full  with  this  savory  mess  of  rice 
and  sheep's  flesh,  the  Sultan,  all  trembling,  would 
anxiously  watch  to  see  how  the  majestic  Janissaries 
partook  of  their  pottage.  If  they  devoured  it  vora- 
ciously, that  was  a  sign  of  their  satisfaction  ;  but  if 
they  only  touched  it  in  a  finiking  sort  of  way,  then 
the  Sultan  would  fly  into  the  Seraglio,  and  lock 
himself  up  among  the  damsels  of  the  harem,  for  it 
was  now  certain  that  their  lordships  the  Janissaries 
were  displeased,  and  it  was  well  if  their  displeasure 
only  expressed  itself  by  reducing  a  whole  quarter  or 
so  of  the  city  to  ashes. 

Two  Sultans  had  tried  to  break  in  two  this  dan- 
gerous double  -  edged  weapon,  which  inflicted  as 


IQ2  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

many  wounds  in  the  heart  of  the  realm  as  ever  it 
dealt  outside  ;  but  the  Janissaries'  magic  influence 
was  so  interwoven  with,  so  ingrafted  in,  the  mind 
of  the  nation  that  public  feeling  was  on  their  side, 
and  both  rulers  perished  in  the  bold  attempt.  They 
dragged  Sultan  Osman  forth  from  the  Seraglio,  and 
set  him  on  the  back  of  an  ass  with  his  face  to  its 
tail,  carried  him  in  derision  from  one  end  of  the 
town  to  the  other,  and  then  flung  him  into  the  fatal 
Seven  Towers,  where  the  Turkish  rulers  and  their 
relatives  are  wont  to  be  buried  alive  and  die  forgot- 
ten. Mahmoud  II. 's  father,  Selim,  on  the  other 
hand,  expired  beneath  the  sword  -  thrusts  of  the 
rebels,  and  those  swords  were  still  sharp  and  those 
hands  were  still  strong  when  the  son  of  the  man 
whom  they  had  slain  sat  on  the  throne,  and  under 
no  other  Sultan  did  the  throne  tremble  so  much  as 
under  him. 

In  these  days  the  mighty  corps  of  the  Janissaries 
lived  only  to  commit  crimes  or  gigantic  mistakes  ; 
its  ancient  glory  was  not  renewed.  During  the 
last  century  their  arms  had  constantly  been  shat- 
tered whenever  they  came  into  collision  with  the 
progressive  military  science  of  Europe.  In  the 
course  of  the  ages  the  flowers  in  Begtash's  garden 
had  sadly  faded.  The  flowery  petals  of  their  glory 
had  fallen  from  them,  and  only  the  thorns  re- 
mained ;  and  even  these  were  no  longer  the  thorns 
of  the  brave  thick -set  hedge  which  defends  the 
borders  of  the  garden  against  would-be  invaders, 
but  the  stings  of  the  nettle  which  hurts  the  hand  of 
the  gardener  as  he  hoes. 

Neither  life  nor  property  was  any  longer  safe 
from  them.  The  Sultan  himself,  when  he  sat  upon 


THE    FLOWERS   OF   THE   GARDEN   OF   BEGTASH    193 

the  throne,  was  in  the  most  dangerous  place  of  all, 
and  the  Viziers — the  chief  officials  of  the  realm — 
trembled  every  day  for  their  lives.  The  turbulence 
of  the  Janissaries  was  a  perpetually  recurring  dis- 
ease, running  through  all  the  arteries  of  the  realm, 
and  covering  the  once  mighty  empire  with  poison- 
ous ulcers. 

These  seditious  outbreaks  occurred  even  during 
the  deliberations  of  the  Divan,  and  fear  on  such  oc- 
casions was  a  more  urgent  counsellor  than  convic- 
tion to  the  palace  magnates  who  sat  in  the  cupolaed 
chamber. 

The  threats  of  the  Janissaries  had  compelled 
Mahmoud  to  take  up  arms  against  Ali  Pasha  ;  and 
now,  when  Ali  had  kindled  the  flames  of  war  all 
over  the  empire,  and  the  Sultan  bade  the  Janissa- 
ries hasten  against  the  enemy  and  subdue  him,  they 
replied  that  they  would  not  fight  unless  the  Sultan 
led  them  in  person. 

Instead  of  that,  they  waged  war  within  the  very 
walls  of  Stambul,  for  whenever  the  news  of  a  defeat 
reached  the  capital,  the  Janissaries  would  fall  upon 
the  defenceless  Greeks  and  massacre  them  by  thou- 
sands. 

From  distant  Asia,  from  the  most  savage  parts 
of  the  empire,  Begtash's  priests  appeared  and  pro- 
claimed in  the  mosques  death  and  destruction  on 
the  heads  of  all  the  Greeks.  It  was  they  who,  with 
torches  in  their  hands,  headed  the  rush  of  the  fa- 
natical Janissaries  against  Buyukdere,  Pera,  and 
Galata,  the  quarters  of  the  city  where  the  Greeks 
resided,  and  every  day  they  thundered  with  their 
bludgeons  at  the  gates  of  the  Seraglio,  demanding 
ever  more  and  more  sentences  of  death  against  the 
13 


194  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

Greek  captives  who  were  shut  up  in  the  Seven 
Towers.  The  Sultan's  officials,  trembling  with  fear, 
wrote  out  the  sentences  demanded  of  them,  and  the 
victims  fell  in  hundreds ;  and  when  the  Russian 
ambassador,  Stroganov,  protested  against  this  butch- 
ery, the  Janissaries  attacked  his  palace  and  riddled 
all  the  doors  and  windows  with  bullets,  which  was 
the  subsequent  pretext  for  the  long  war  which 
shook  the  empire  to  its  base,  though  the  Janissaries 
never  lived  to  feel  it. 

Mahmoud  watched  from  the  summit  of  the 
imperial  palace  the  devastation  of  Stambul  and 
the  devastation  of  his  empire,  and  he  saw  no  help 
anywhere.  He  saw  nothing  but  the  melancholy 
examples  of  his  ancestors  and  the  disappearance 
of  his  dominions  ;  and  as  he  stroked  the  head 
of  his  first-born,  Abdul  Mejid,  a  child  of  nine,  he 
thought  to  himself,  "  This  lad  will  not  sit  on  the 
throne,  he  will  not  be  a  ruler  as  his  forefathers 
were ;  he  will  not  dictate  laws  to  half  the  world 
like  the  other  descendants  of  Omar  ;  but  he  will 
be  a  fugitive  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  the  slave 
of  strange  people,  as  was  the  fugitive  Dzhem, 
whom  they  cast  forth  ages  ago." 

How  miserable  was  the  life  of  the  Sultan  !  What 
avails  it  though  an  earthly  paradise  be  open  to 
him  if  life  itself  be  closed  against  him  ?  What 
avails  it  to  be  a  god  if  he  cannot  be  a  man  ?  The 
Sultan  never  knows  what  it  is  to  have  relatives. 
Very  early,  while  they  are  still  children,  the  latest 
born  are  shut  up  in  the  Seven  Towers.  The  first- 
born son  can  never  meet  them,  unless  it  be  on  the 
steps  of  the  throne,  when  the  rebellious  Janissaries 
drag  one  of  them  from  his  dungeon  to  raise  him 


THE    FLOWERS   OF   THE   GARDEN   OF   BEGTASH    195 

to  the  throne,  and  lock  up  the  first-born  in  his 
stead.  The  Sultan  cannot  be  said  to  possess  a  wife  ; 
all  that  he  has  are  favorite  concubines,  in  hundreds, 
in  thousands,  as  many  as  he  chooses  to  have,  and 
there  is  no  difference  between  them  except  differ- 
ences of  feminine  loveliness  and  the  blind  chance 
which  blesses  some  of  them  with  children.  And  he 
makes  no  more  account  of  one  than  he  does  of 
another.  Not  one  of  them  feels  it  her  duty  to  love 
her  husband  ;  it  is  enough  if  she  be  the  slave  of  his 
desires.  If  the  Padishah  be  troubled  or  sorrowful, 
there  is  none  about  him  to  whom  he  can  open  his 
heart.  He  may  go  from  one  end  of  the  harem  to 
the  other,  like  one  who  wanders  through  a  conser- 
vatory whose  flowers  are  all  so  beautiful,  so  radi- 
antly smiling ;  but  in  vain  will  he  tell  them  of  his 
grief  and  trouble,  for  they  do  not  understand  him, 
they  do  not  trouble  their  heads  about  his  thoughts  ; 
and  if,  perchance,  he  tells  them  that  from  all  four 
corners  of  the  world  mighty  foes  are  marching 
against  Stambul,  here  and  there,  perchance,  he  may 
hear  a  sigh  of  longing  from  some  captive  maiden, 
who  cannot  conceal  her  secret  joy  at  the  thought 
of  the  happy  hour  when  the  hand  of  deliverance 
will  thunder  at  the  harem  door  and  break  its  bolts 
and  give  freedom,  beautiful  sunbright  freedom,  to 
the  captives. 

It  is  slavish  obsequiousness  and  nothing  else 
which  bends  its  knee  before  the  Padishah ;  it  is 
fear,  not  love,  which  obeys  him.  And  to  whom 
shall  he  turn  when  his  heart  is  held  fast  in  the 
iron  grip  of  that  numbing  sensation  which  makes 
the  mightiest  feel  they  are  but  men — fear  ? 

Mahmoud's  sole  joy  was  his  nine -year -old  son. 


196  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

The  child  was  brought  up  by  his  grandmother, 
the  Sultana  Valideh,  herself  scarce  forty  years  of 
age.  This  dowager  Sultana  had  civilized,  European 
tastes.  She  had  been  educated  in  France  ;  the 
young  prince  was  passionately  attached  to  her, 
and  she  inspired  him  with  all  those  desires  and 
noble  instincts  under  whose  influence,  thirty  years 
later,  new  life  was  to  be  poured  into  the  decrepit 
Turkish  Empire. 

The  Sultana  Valideh  wished  to  so  educate  her 
grandson  that  one  day  he  might  occupy  a  worthy 
position  among  the  other  rulers  of  Europe.  She 
sowed  betimes  in  his  heart  the  seeds  of  high  prin- 
ciples and  enlightened  tastes,  and  the  Sultan  would 
frequently  listen  to  the  wise  sentences  of  his  little 
lad,  and,  while  rocking  him  on  his  knee,  with  a 
smile  upon  his  face,  his  heart  would  beat  in  an  agony 
of  fear,  "What  if  anybody  got  word  of  this  ?" 

For  the  old  Turkish  party  lay  in  wait  for  every 
word  that  fell  from  the  Sultan's  mouth,  and  the 
pointing  of  the  little  finger  of  one  of  Begtash's  fakirs 
was  more  to  be  feared  than  the  armed  hand  of  the 
most  valiant  of  the  Greek  heroes.  If  any  one  of  the 
Ulemas  should  chance  to  discover  that  the  young 
heir  to  the  throne  listened  to  any  other  bookish 
lore  than  what  was  contained  within  the  covers  of 
the  Kuran,  which  comprised  within  itself  (so  they 
taught)  all  the  wisdom  of  the  world,  they  were  capa- 
ble of  hounding  on  the  Janissaries  against  the  Se- 
raglio, and  slaying  both  sovereign  and  child. 

The  recollection  of  Achmed  Sidi  was  still  fresh  in 
the  memory  of  men.  Sidi  had  been  one  of  the 
Chief  Ulemas,  and  the  Imam  of  the  Mosque  of 
Sophia  ;  and  when,  a  few  years  ago,  the  warriors 


THE   FLOWERS   OF   THE   GARDEN    OF   BEGTASH    197 

and  the  diplomatists  of  the  Tsaritsa  Catherine  had 
won  victory  after  victory  over  the  Ottomans,  not 
only  on  every  battle-field,  but  also  in  every  political 
arena,  the  unfortunate  imam  advised  the  Divan 
that,  in  view  of  the  indisputable  superiority  of  the 
Christians,  it  was  necessary  to  teach  the  Turkish 
diplomatists  the  Bible,  the  inference  being  that 
just  as  the  Moslem  sages  derived  all  their  military 
science  and  all  their  administrative  wisdom  from 
the  Kuran,  so  also  the  Christians  must  needs  learn 
all  these  things  from  their  Bible,  thereby  tacitly 
acknowledging  the  capacity  of  the  Christians  for 
appropriating  all  knowledge.  But  the  well-meaning 
Ulema  paid  dearly  for  this  good  counsel.  They 
banished  him  to  the  Isle  of  Chios,  and  there,  for  a 
very  trivial  offence,  he  was  first  degraded  from  his 
office  (for  it  is  not  lawful  to  kill  a  Ulema  with 
weapons),  and  then  handed  over  to  the  pasha  of  the 
place,  who  pounded  him  to  death  in  a  stone  mortar 
— a  deterrent  example  for  future  reformers.  Let 
them  beware,  therefore,  of  moving  a  single  stone  in 
the  ancient  fabric  of  the  Ottoman  constitution  ! 


CHAPTER   XII 

THE   SHIPWRECK   OF   LEONIDAS 

Now,  one  fine  day,  when  the  worthy  Leonidas  Ar- 
gyrocantharides  set  out  from  Smyrna  on  one  of  his 
prettiest  ships,  a  vexatious  little  accident  befell  him 
by  the  way.  The  ship,  which  had  taken  in  a  cargo 
of  tanned  hides  at  Stambul,  was  overtaken,  en  route, 
by  a  tempest  which  drove  her  upon  the  coast  of 
Seleucia.  There,  in  the  darkness  of  the  night,  she 
was  thrown  upon  a  sand-bank,  from  which  she  was 
unable  to  extricate  herself  till  morning  ;  and  it  was 
only  when  the  land  became  visible  in  the  early 
light  of  dawn  that  the  merchant  began  to  realize 
the  awkward  position  into  which  his  ship  had  got, 
despite  Saint  Procopius  and  Saint  Demetrius,  who 
were  very  beautifully  painted  on  both  sides  of  her 
prow.  The  vessel  had  heeled  over  on  one  side,  and 
that  side  of  her  which  lay  above  the  waves  was  threat- 
ened every  moment  with  destruction  by  the  onset 
of  the  foaming  surf  which  broke  from  time  to  time 
over  the  deck,  making  a  pretty  havoc  of  the  masts 
and  spars.  The  joints  of  the  ship's  timbers  began 
to  be  loosened,  creaking  and  shivering  at  each 
fresh  shock  of  the  waves.  And  if  the  fate  of  the 
ship  on  the  sand-bank  was  sad  enough,  still  sadder 
would  it  have  been  if  she  had  broken  loose  there- 
from ;  for  right  in  front  of  her  lay  the  rocks  of  the 


THE    SHIPWRECK   OF    LEONIDAS  199 

Seleucian  coast,  whose  steep  crags  were  lashed  so 
furiously  by  the  raging  sea  that  the  crashing  waves 
leaped  fully  a  hundred  fathoms  up  their  sides.  A 
nice  place  this  would  have  been  for  any  ship  to  play 
pitch-and-toss  in ! 

The  worthy  merchant  sorely  lamented  his  fate, 
sorely  lamented,  also,  his  fine  ship,  which  was  paint- 
ed in  .elaborate  patterns  with  all  the  colors  of  the 
rainbow.  He  lamented  his  many  beautiful  goat- 
skins, not  a  single  bundle  of  which  he  would  allow 
to  be  cast  into  the  sea  for  the  purpose  of  lightening 
the  ship  ;  rather  let  them  all  go  to  the  bottom  to- 
gether !  He  mourned  over  himself,  too,  condemned 
at  the  beginning  of  the  best  years  of  his  life  to  be 
suffocated  in  the  sea ;  but  what  he  lamented  far 
more  than  ship,  goat-skins,  or  even  life  itself,  were 
the  two  Circassian  children,  the  precious,  beautiful 
boy  and  girl,  Thomar  and  Milieva,  who  were  worth, 
at  the  current  market  prices  of  the  day,  ten  thou- 
sand ducats  apiece  ;  Leonidas  would  have  given  his 
own  skin  for  them  any  day  ! 

Full  of  great  hopes,  he  had  embarked  the  two 
children  at  Stambul  (the  tanned  hides  were  only  a 
secondary  consideration);  and  lo !  now,  just  when 
he  was  reaching  his  goal,  the  curse  of  Kasi  Mollah 
overtook  him. 

Two  long-boats  fully  manned  had  made  an  at- 
tempt to  reach  the  shore,  in  order  that  they  might 
from  thence  haul  the  ship  off  the  sand-bank,  and 
both  boats  had  been  seized  before  his  very  eyes  by 
the  breakers,  and  dashed  to  pieces  against  the  steep 
rocks  ;  so  there  was  nothing  for  it  but  to  remain 
behind  and  perish  on  the  sand-bank. 

One  wave  after  another  drove  the  hulk  deeper 


200  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

and  deeper  down  ;  those  who  still  remained  aboard 
wrung  their  hands  and  prayed  or  cursed,  according 
as  temperament  or  habit  urged  them. 

As  for  Leonidas,  he  did  both  —  he  prayed  and 
cursed  at  the  same  time  ;  for  it  seemed  quite  clear 
to  him  that  praying  or  cursing  separately  was  of 
not  the  slightest  use.  The  two  children,  meanwhile, 
holding  each  other  tightly  embraced,  sat  beside  the 
broken  stump  of  the  mast  and  seemed  to  mock  at 
the  terrible  tempest. 

Not  a  sign  of  fear  was  visible  on  their  faces. 
This  roaring  wind,  these  foam  -  churning  waves, 
seemed  to  afford  them  a  pleasant  pastime.  The 
black-and-white  storm-birds  sitting  on  the  towering 
billows  were  swimming  there  all  round  the  doomed 
ship,  merrily  flapping  the  water  with  their  wings. 
Oh,  those  sea -swallows  were  having  a  fine  time 
of  it! 

The  two  children  had  agreed  between  themselves, 
some  time  before,  that  if  the  ship  went  down,  they 
would  fling  themselves  into  the  water  and  swim 
ashore.  That  would  be  a  mere  trifle  to  them,  of 
course. 

Full  of  despair,  the  merchant  rushed  towards 
them,  and  embracing  them  with  both  his  arms,  he 
exclaimed,  looking  bitterly  at  the  sky,  "  Merciful 
Heaven  !  ten  thousand  ducats  !" 

The  children  fancied  that  terror  had  made  the 
merchant  mad,  and  they  tried  to  comfort  him  with 
kind  words  : 

"  Don't  distress  yourself,  dear  foster-father ;  we 
will  not  perish  here,  and  we  will  not  leave  you  to 
perish  either.  As  soon  as  the  ship  goes  down,  we'll 
swim  for  the  shore.  We  both  of  us  know  very  well 


THE    SHIPWRECK  OF    LEONIDAS  2OI 

how  to  cleave  the  waves  with  our  strong  arms,  and 
we  will  fasten  you  to  our  girdles  and  save  you 
along  with  ourselves." 

The  merchant  kissed  the  two  dear  children,  and 
embraced  them  tenderly.  An  hour  later  the  last 
planks  of  the  fine  ship  broke  away  from  each  other, 
and  the  shipwrecked  crew  clung  desperately  to  the 
floating  spars  that  the  waves  tossed  hither  and 
thither.  The  greater  part  of  the  ship's  company 
was  ingulfed  forthwith  by  the  waves  or  dashed  to 
pieces  against  the  hard  rocks  ;  only  three  persons 
were  saved — the  merchant  and  the  two  children. 

Leonidas,  fast  tied  to  their  girdles,  allowed  him- 
self to  be  cast  among  the  waters.  The  first  who 
rose  on  the  crest  of  the  foaming  waves  was  Thomar. 
He  perceived  the  rock  on  which  a  huge  mountain 
of  surf,  rushing  after  him,  threatened  to  dash  him 
to  pieces,  and,  watching  his  opportunity,  grasped 
the  long  dangling  roots  of  a  tree  which  grew  out 
of  a  cleft  of  the  rocks  and,  with  a  tremendous 
effort,  dragged  all  three  of  them  up  to  it.  The 
wave  rolled  right  over  them,  burying  them  for  an 
instant  in  deep  water ;  but  the  next  moment  the 
surge  rolled  back  again,  and  they  were  on  the  rocky 
coast. 

The  merchant  was  more  dead  than  alive,  so  the 
children  had  to  drag  him  with  them  for  a  long  way 
inland,  lest  the  returning  surge  should  carry  them 
back  to  sea  again.  They  only  ventured  to  rest 
when  they  had  reached  a  rocky  cavity  where  they 
could  feel  sure  that  they  were  safe.  Even  here  the 
water,  which  shot  up  as  high  as  a  tower  against 
the  opposing  rock,  covered  them  every  moment ; 
but  they  did  not  feel  its  weight. 


202  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

There  they  had  to  remain,  crouching  closely  to- 
gether, till  the  evening.  Neither  in  front  nor  be- 
hind was  there  any  place  of  refuge,  and  it  was  with 
a  feeling  of  envy  that  they  looked  down  upon  the 
stormy  petrels  which  towards  evening  began  to  sit 
down  in  long  rows  on  the  edge  of  the  rocks,  whither 
it  was  impossible  for  them  to  follow. 

Gradually,  however,  the  storm  died  away,  the  sea 
subsided  and  grew  smooth,  and  the  place  where  the 
shipwrecked  group  had  taken  refuge  rose  three  ells 
above  the  surface  of  the  water.  Then  they  could 
venture  to  look  around  them.  The  whole  shore 
was  strewn  with  pieces  of  timber  and  mangled 
corpses.  Wreckage  and  dead  bodies  were  all  that 
the  sea  had  vomited  forth  of  the  rich  cargo  of  the 
fine  ship. 

But  the  merchant  did  not  despair.  Making  the 
two  children  kneel  down  beside  him,  he  knelt  down 
in  their  midst,  and  made  them  pray  a  prayer  of 
gratitude  to  Heaven  for  their  marvellous  deliver- 
ance ;  and  then,  pressing  them  to  his  bosom,  he 
sobbed,  with  the  tears  in  his  eyes,  "  What  do  I  care, 
though  my  ship  is  lost  and  all  my  wares  are  sub- 
merged, so  long  as  ye  remain  to  me,  my  precious 
offspring?  That  is  quite  consolation  enough  for 
me." 

And  the  worthy  merchant  told  the  truth,  for  as 
soon  as  ever  he  could  reach  Stambul  lie  was  sure 
of  getting  for  these  two  children  enough  to  enable 
him  to  buy  two  ships  and  twice  as  many  wares  as 
he  had  lost  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea. 

But  now  the  most  difficult  question  arose — How 
were  they  to  get  away  from  that  spot  to  any  place 
inhabited  by  man  ?  All  ships  gave  this  dangerous 


THE    SHIPWRECK   OF   LEONIDAS  203 

coast  a  wide  berth  ;  there  was  nothing  to  tempt 
them  to  the  spot.  Even  fishermen  did  not  venture 
as  far  in  their  barks,  so  that  the  unfortunate  ref- 
ugees who  had  escaped  the  waters  saw  starvation 
approaching  them. 

But  suddenly,  while  they  were  meditating  over 
the  misery  of  their  position,  they  fancied  they 
heard  human  voices  a  little  distance  off  —  deep, 
manly  voices,  apparently  engaged  in  a  lively  dis- 
pute. 

The  two  children  rejoiced,  thinking  that  good 
men  were  hard  by ;  but  the  merchant  trembled, 
for,  thought  he,  "  What  if  they  be  robbers  ?" 

Thomar  now  bade  his  sister  remain  with  Leo- 
nidas  while  he  went  in  the  direction  of  the  voices 
to  discover  who  the  speakers  might  be.  The  brave 
boy  clambered  from  one  cliff  to  another,  made  the 
circuit  of  the  rock -chamber  behind  which  they 
were  sitting,  and  when  he  came  to  the  opposite 
side  of  it  a  spacious  empty  cavern  yawned  blackly 
in  front  of  him,  half  covered  by  whortleberry 
bushes.  Probably  the  conversation  came  from 
thence,  but  neither  near  nor  far  was  a  human 
creature  to  be  seen,  nor  were  there  any  footprints 
of  men  on  the  ground ;  the  front  of  the  cavern 
was  covered  with  thick  green  moss,  on  which  foot- 
prints left  no  trace.  Thomar  shouted  into  the 
cave,  and  as  not  a  word  came  back,  he  boldly 
entered,  and  slowly  advanced  forward.  He  went 
on  and  on  as  far  as  the  light  of  the  outside  world 
extended,  and  then,  as  no  one  replied  to  his  loud 
challenges,  turned  back  again  by  the  way  he  had 
come,  and,  making  the  circuit  of  the  rock  again, 
told  the  merchant  that  he  had  not  come  upon  any 


204  THE    LION    OP   JANINA 

human  beings,  but  had  only  found  a  cavern  which, 
at  any  rate,  would  make  them  good  night  quarters. 

The  conversation  they  thought  they  had  heard 
must  have  been  a  delusion.  Then  they  helped  one 
another  along  the  rocks  and  arrived  at  the  mouth 
of  the  cavern. 

Milieva  had  scarcely  cast  a  glance  into  it  when 
she  exclaimed,  full  of  joy  :  "  Look,  Thomar,  here  are 
two  chests  among  the  bushes  !"  And,  indeed,  there 
were  two  boxes  made  of  boards,  and  Thomar  won- 
dered that  he  had  not  noticed  them  before.  No 
doubt  the  sea  had  cast  them  up  thither  out  of  some 
ship  that  had  been  wrecked  there  before. 

One  of  the  boxes  resembled  those  chests  in  which 
sailors  keep  their  biscuits,  but  the  shape  of  the  other 
suggested  that  it  was  one  of  those  hermetically 
sealed  vessels  used  for  holding  good  wines.  Why 
should  they  not  turn  them  to  some  account  ? 

They  were  not  long  in  forcing  them  open,  and 
what  was  their  astonishment  when  they  perceived 
that  the  biscuits  in  the  first  box  were  not  even 
mouldy,  but  quite  dry  and  sound,  as  if  they  had 
only  been  brought  thither  quite  recently  ;  while  in 
the  second  box  not  one  of  the  scores  of  flasks  there 
displayed  was  broken  or  cracked,  but  lay  neatly 
stored  away  in  layers  of  straw  ? 

The  refugees  did  not  greatly  concern  themselves 
with  the  question,  Who  put  these  boxes  here?  and 
why  ?  Nobody  who,  after  being  tossed  about  on 
the  sea  for  three  days  with  nothing  to  eat  or  drink 
all  the  time,  and  is  then  unexpectedly  confronted 
with  rich  stores  of  bread  and  wine — nobody,  I  am 
sure,  under  such  circumstances  would  think  of  con- 
sulting the  Kuran  as  to  whether  a  conscientious 


THE    SHIPWRECK   OF    LEONIDAS  205 

Mussulman  should  eat  and  drink  such  things,  but 
would  fall  to  at  once,  and  thank  Allah  for  the 
chance. 

The  children  forgot,  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye, 
the  dangers  to  which  they  had  been  exposed,  and, 
after  the  first  glass  or  two  of  wine,  overcome  by 
fatigue,  lay  down  on  the  soft  bed  which  Nature 
had  made  ready  for  them  with  her  most  fragrant 
moss.  Leonidas,  however,  remained  sitting  where 
he  was,  considering  it  his  bounden  duty  to  taste  all 
the  wines  which  were  here  offered  to  him  gratis,  one 
after  the  other ;  in  consequence  whereof,  when  he 
did  lie  down  at  last,  he  chose  a  position  in  which  his 
head  was  very  low  down  while  his  feet  were  high  in 
the  air,  and  so  they  all  three  slumbered  peacefully 
together. 

Then  the  voices  of  men  were  heard  once  more 
far  off  in  the  cavern,  and  not  long  afterwards  there 
emerged  from  its  black  mouth  six  gray-haired,  pale- 
faced  human  beings.  He  who  came  first  was  the 
eldest.  His  white  beard  reached  to  his  girdle,  his 
mouth  was  hidden  by  his  mustache,  and  his  eyes 
were  covered  by  his  white  eyebrows. 

These  men  were  fakirs  of  the  Omarite,  Order, 
whose  rule  obliges  them  to  endure  the  most  terrible 
of  all  renunciations — abstention  from  all  enjoyment 
of  the  light  of  day.  Plunging  themselves  into  eter- 
nal darkness  for  the  glory  of  Allah,  they  make  of 
life  a  long  midnight,  and  the  sun  never  beholds 
them  on  the  face  of  the  earth. 

The  night  was  well  advanced  when  the  six  Omar- 
ites  came  forth  to  the  sleepers,  and  while  five  of  the 
fakirs  stood  round  them  in  silence,  the  sixth — the 
one  with  the  long  flowing  beard — bent  over  the  chil- 


206  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

dren  and  examined  their  features  attentively  in  the 
darkness  of  the  night,  which  was  only  mitigated  by 
the  light  of  a  few  faint  stars  half  hidden  among 
errant  clouds.  At  last  he  whispered  to  his  com- 
rades, "It  is  they."  Then,  turning  the  tips  of  his 
thumbs  downwards,  he  laid  them  softly  on  Thomar's 
head.  All  five  fakirs  listened  with  rapt  attention. 
The  bosom  of  the  sleeping  lad  began  to  heave  tu- 
multuously  ;  he  clinched  his  fists  ;  his  face  grew 
hot ;  his  lips  swelled.  The  old  man  then  seemed  to 
breathe  upon  his  forehead,  as  if  he  would  whisper 
something,  whereupon  the  sleeping  lad  exclaimed, 
in  a  strong,  audible  voice,  "With  swords,  with  guns, 
with  arms  !" 

The  old  men  shook  their  heads,  showing  thereby 
that  they  approved  of  his  words. 

Then  the  eldest  old  man  bent  over  the  other  child 
and  made  passes  over  her  face  with  his  five  fingers. 
The  maiden's  bosom  expanded  visibly,  and  when  the 
old  man  stooped  over  and  breathed  upon  her  she 
cried  out  in  an  energetic,  dictatorial  manner,  "  Down 
on  your  knees  before  me  !" 

At  this  the  Omarites  all  whispered  together,  and 
two  of  them  lifting  the  lad,  two  the  girl,  and  two 
the  merchant,  they  carried  them  on  their  shoulders 
into  the  depths  of  the  cavern. 

The  mouth  of  this  cavern  was  the  already  men- 
tioned tunnel  whose  farthest  exit  debouched  upon 
the  valley  of  Seleucia,  half  a  league  from  the  sea — 
that  waste,  barren,  and  savage  valley. 

The  Omarites  moved  to  and  fro  in  the  black  cave 
without  a  torch,  like  the  blind,  who  do  not  go  astray 
in  the  turnings  and  windings  of  the  streets,  although 
they  see  them  not.  The  sleepers  had  drunk  a  magic 


THE   SHIPWRECK   OF   LEONIDAS  207 

potion,  which  did  not  permit  them  to  awake  for  some 
time,  and  the  men  carried  them  on  their  shoulders 
to  the  opposite  entrance  of  the  cavern  and  there  laid 
them  down  on  the  moss,  in  a  place  where  the  sunlight 
was  wont  to  penetrate. 

It  was  already  late  in  the  day  when  the  two  chil- 
dren awoke.  As  soon  as  they  had  opened  their 
eyes,  their  first  care  was  to  kiss  and  embrace  each 
other.  Then  they  aroused  the  merchant  also  and, 
rubbing  sleep  out  of  their  eyes,  began  to  tell  him, 
in  childish  fashion,  what  they  had  been  dreaming 
about. 

"  Ah  !  what  a  lovely  dream  I  had  !"  cried  Thomar, 
and  even  now  his  eyes  sparkled.  "  I  was  standing 
beside  the  Sultan,  who  was  leaning  on  my  shoulder. 
Before  me  and  around  me  howled  a  rebellious  mul- 
titude, and  the  Sultan  was  pale  and  sad.  Turning 
towards  me  he  sighed,  'Wherewith  shall  I  appease 
this  raging  sea?'  For  a  long  time  I  could  find  no 
answer.  It  was  as  if  something  were  weighing  me 
down,  something  as  heavy  as  a  mountain,  when 
suddenly  the  words  escaped  from  my  lips,  '  With 
swords,  with  guns,  with  weapons  !'  And  then  the 
Padishah  girded  his  own  sword  upon  me,  and  I 
rushed  among  the  howling  mob,  and  I  cut  and 
hacked  away  at  them  till  they  were  all  consumed, 
and  at  last  a  field  that  had  been  reaped  lay  before 
me,  and  it  was  covered  with  nothing  but  corpses." 

"  That  is  a  foolish  dream,"  said  Leonidas.  "  Why 
did  you  eat  so  much  last  night  ?" 

And  now  Milieva  told  her  dream. 

"  I  also  must  have  been  confused  by  the  wine. 
Before  me  also  a  rebellious  multitude  appeared,  and 
it  then  seemejd  to  me  as  if  I  was  not  a  girl  but  a 


208  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

boy.  Furiously  they  rushed  upon  me  from  every 
side,  but  I  feared  them  not,  and  when  they  were 
quite  near  to  me  I  cried  out  to  them,  '  Down  on 
your  knees  before  me  !  I  am  the  Sultan's  daughter  !' 
And  everything  was  instantly  quiet." 

The  merchant  laughed  till  he  choked  at  this 
dream.  Who  but  children  could  dream  such  rub- 
bish ? 

"  But  at  home  they  used  to  say,"  observed 
Thomar,  with  a  grave  face,  "  that  whatever  any 
one  dreams  in  a  strange  place  where  he  has  never 
slept  before,  he  will  see  that  dream  accomplished." 

"  Well,  I  am  much  obliged  to  you,"  said  the  mer- 
chant, "  for  in  my  dream  I  was  hanging  up  in  Sa- 
lonika by  my  feet,  with  my  head  downwards." 

Then  the  merchant  made  the  children  leave  the 
cavern. 

"  Come,  my  children,"  said  he,  "  let  us  see  if  the 
sea  has  calmed  down,  and  whether  a  ship  is  ap- 
proaching from  anywhere." 

Thomar  obeyed,  quitted  the  cavern,  and  exclaimed, 
in  astonishment : 

"  Look,  my  dear  foster-father  !  How  could  a  ship 
come  here  when  the  very  sea  has  vanished,  and 
only  the  bottom  of  it  remains." 

And  indeed  the  district  stretching  out  before 
them  was  quite  bare  and  barren  enough  to  be 
taken  for  the  bottom  of  the  sea. 

Leonidas  took  the  lad's  words  for  a  joke,  and  it 
was  a  joke  he  did  not  relish. 

u  Keep  your  witticisms  for  another  time,  my  son," 
said  he,  "and  rub  your  eyes  that  they  may  see  the 
better." 

But  Milieva  leaped  after  Thomar,  find  when  she 


THE   SHIPWRECK   OF   LEONIDAS  209 

had  got  up  to  him  she  clapped  her  hands  together, 
and  exclaimed,  with  nai've  amazement  : 

"  Why,  the  sea  has  run  away  from  us  !" 

And  now  the  merchant  himself  arose  from  his 
place,  went  out  of  the  cavern,  and  could  scarce  be- 
lieve his  eyes  when  he  saw  before  him  the  savage, 
rocky  region,  where  not  a  drop  of  moisture  could  be 
seen,  to  say  nothing  of  the  sea  ! 

"  God  has  worked  wonders  for  us,"  sighed  the  mer- 
chant. "  It  is  plain  that  we  are  in  quite  a  different 
place  from  that  wherein  we  went  to  sleep." 

"  No  doubt  the  peris  of  the  mountains  of  Kaf  have 
conveyed  us  hither,"  said  Milieva. 

"  Peris,  no  doubt,"  observed  Leonidas,  absently, 
groping  for  his  long  reticule,  and  feeling  whether 
his  diamonds  were  still  there.  If  it  were  not  peris, 
they  would  certainly  have  searched  him  for  his  dia- 
monds. 

And  now  they  had  to  find  out  where  they  were, 
and  what  was  the  best  way  to  get  out  of  the  wilder- 
ness. The  greatest  anxiety  had  disappeared ;  they 
had  no  longer  anything  to  fear  from  the  sea.  On 
dry  land  it  would  be  much  easier  to  find  a  place  of 
refuge. 

After  a  little  searching  they  came  upon  footprints 
in  the  sand,  and  these  footprints  led  them  to  the 
mouth  of  the  valley.  Whole  forests  of  the  large 
cochineal  cactus  grew  among  the  rocks,  and  here 
and  there  they  saw  a  light-footed  kid  grazing  on  the 
dry  sward.  Not  very  long  afterwards  they  fell  in 
with  the  goatherd.  Leonidas  was  rather  alarmed 
than  delighted  at  the  sight  of  the  grim  muscular 
figure,  who,  on  perceiving  them,  came  straight  tow- 
ards them,  and  addressed  them  in  a  gruff  voice. 


210  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

"Are  ye  those  shipwrecked  fugitives  who  slept  at 
night  in  the  Cavern  of  the  dzJiin  ?" 

"  Dzhin  /"  said  Leonidas  to  himself.  "  Methinks 
it  must  have  been  a  spirit  of  evil,  then." 

The  children  answered  the  goatherd  boldly,  and 
begged  him  to  direct  them  to  some  inhabited  re- 
gion. 

"  Go  straight  along  this  gorge,"  said  he  ;  "  you 
cannot  mistake  the  path.  On  your  right  hand  you 
will  find  a  hut  where  dwells  a  fakir  of  the  Erd- 
buhar  Order,  who  will  direct  you  farther.  Salam 
alek  !"  And  with  that  the  goatherd  quitted  them, 
to  the  great  amazement  of  Leonidas,  who  had  ex- 
pected nothing  less  of  him  than  highway  robbery. 

Towards  evening  they  had  arrived  at  the  hut  of 
the  Erdbuhar  hermit. 

"  I  have  been  expecting  you,"  said  the  dervish, 
when  they  came  up  to  him.  "  Have  you  not  suf- 
fered shipwreck  and  slept  all  night  with  the  dzJiin  ?" 

Evidently  one  marvel  after  another  was  in  store 
for  them. 

The  dervish  gave  them  meat  and  drink,  and 
washed  their  feet,  and  after  they  had  enjoyed  his 
hospitality  he  offered  to  conduct  them  all  the  way 
to  the  gates  of  Seleucia.  The  merchant  would  very 
much  have  liked  to  know  something  of  his  wondrous 
deliverers,  but  as  the  dervish  answered  all  his  ques- 
tions with  quotations  from  the  Kuran,  he  learned 
very  little  that  was  definite  from  that  holy  man. 

When  Seleucia  came  in  sight,  the  merchant  began 
thanking  the  dervish  for  his  good  offices.  "  Do  not 
weary  thyself  any  further,  worthy  Mussulman,"  cried 
he  ;  "I  know  not  how  to  reward  thy  labors,  but  Al- 
lah will  requite  thee.  I  am  a  beggar.  Thou  dost 


THE    SHIPWRECK   OF   LEONIDAS  211 

see  that  I  am  as  bare  as  one  of  my  fingers.  The 
ocean  hath  swallowed  up  my  all." 

And  all  the  while  his  reticule  was  full  of  precious 
stones ;  but  he  would  have  considered  it  a  very 
great  act  of  folly  not  to  have  made  capital  qsat  of 
his  wretchedness,  and  paid  the  dervish  with  fine 
words. 

But  the  dervish  would  not  even  accept  his  thanks. 
"It  is  but  my  duty,"  said  he,  "and  I  did  it  not  for 
thy  sake,  but  for  the  sake  of  others."  And  with  that 
he  quitted  them,  after  giving  a  string  of  praying- 
beads  to  each  of  the  children. 

The  children  went  on  in  front  till  they  reached  the 
gate  of  the  city,  talking  in  a  low  voice  together  ;  but 
when  they  found  themselves  in  the  populous  streets 
they  took  Leonidas  by  the  hand,  and  Thomar  said, 
"  All  that  was  thine  has  been  lost  in  the  sea,  and  who 
will  help  us  in  the  great  strange  city,  where  nobody 
knows  us?  Let  us  therefore  sing  in  the  market- 
place and  before  the  houses  of  the  great  men,  and 
they  will  give  us  money,  and  so  we  shall  be  able  to 
go  on  farther." 

The  merchant  was  greatly  affected  by  this  nai've 
offer,  and  allowed  the  children  to  sing  in  the  mar- 
ket-place and  in  the  porch  of  the  pasha's  house,  and 
in  this  way  they  gained  enough  money  to  enable 
them  to  go  on  to  the  next  city. 

Thus,  at  last,  they  got  back  to  Smyrna.  If  they 
had  been  his  own  children  Argyrocantharides  could 
not  have  looked  for  greater  and  heartier  affection 
from  them.  They  fasted  that  he  might  feast,  they 
shivered  that  he  might  be  warmly  clad,  they  denied 
themselves  sleep  that  he  might  slumber  all  the  more 
tranquilly,  and  lowered  themselves  to  singing  in  the 


212  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

market-place  that  he  might  not  be  compelled  to  beg 
at  the  corners  of  the  streets. 

Good  children  !  sweet  children  ! 

As  soon  as  the  merchant  could  get  a  new  ship  he 
took^hem  with  him  to  Stambul,  and  this  time  no 
misfortune  happened  to  them  by  the  way. 

At  Stambul  he  exhibited  them  to  the  Kizlar- 
Agasi,  who,  after  examining  their  limbs  and  satis- 
fying himself  as  to  their  capabilities,  bought  the 
pair  of  them  from  the  merchant  at  his  own  price 
— the  youth  for  the  Sultan's  corps  of  pages,  the  girl 
for  the  harem. 

To  the  honor  of  the  worthy  merchant,  however,  it 
must  be  said  that  when  he  did  hand  the  children 
over  he  sobbed  bitterly.  Good,  worthy  man  ! 


CHAPTER   XIII 
A   BALL    IN  THE    SERAGLIO 

IT  was  the  birthday  of  the  Sultana  Valideh.  The 
Sultana,  Mahmoud's  mother,  was,  we  may  remem- 
ber, a  Frenchwoman,  whose  parents,  natives  of  the 
Isle  of  Martinique,  had  sent  her  to  Paris  while  still 
very  young,  and  placed  her,  till  she  was  sixteen,  in 
a  convent  to  be  educated.  Then  the  family  sent 
word  that  she  was  to  return  to  the  beautiful  island 
on  the  farther  side  of  Africa  ;  but  during  the  voy- 
age a  tempest  destroyed  the  ship,  and  the  crew  had 
to  take  to  the  boats.  One  of  these  boats,  in  which 
was  the  pretty  French  girl,  was  captured  by  Barba- 
ry  corsairs,  who  sold  her  to  the  Sultan.  The  rest 
we  know,  of  course — 

"  Elle  cut  beau  dire  :   Je  me  meurs ! 
De  nonne  elle  devient  Sultane !" 

Those  poor  flowers  that  are  brought  together 
from  all  the  corners  of  the  earth  to  stock  the  Grand 
Signior's  harem,  and  who  know  nothing  except  how 
to  love,  paled  before  the  radiant  loveliness  and  the 
sparkling  wit  of  this  damsel,  who  had  been  brought 
up  in  the  midst  of  European  culture.  She  became 
the  favorite  wife  of  Selim,  she  bore  him  Mahmoud, 
and  her  son  loved  his  mother  much  better  than  all 
his  damsels  put  together. 


214  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

A  great  surprise  had  been  prepared  for  the  Sul- 
tana Valideh.  The  Sultan  had  arranged  the  whole 
thing  himself  in  secret.  He  was  going  to  give  a 
dance,  after  the  European  fashion,  in  the  Seraglio. 

Tailors  were  brought  from  Vienna  who  set  to 
work  upon  dresses  in  the  latest  fashion  for  the  oda- 
lisks ;  the  eunuchs  were  taught  the  latest  waltz 
music,  a  minuet,  and  two  French  square  dances ; 
and  the  girls  were  all  taught  how  to  dance  these 
dances.  The  men  who  had  admittance  into  the 
harem,  the  Kizlar-Agasi,  the  Anaktar  Bey,  the  heir 
to  the  throne  (Abdul  Mejid),and  the  Sultan  himself, 
wore  brown  European  dress-suits,  so  that  when  the 
Sultana  stepped  into  the  magnificently  illuminated 
porcelain  chamber  she  stood  rooted  to  the  floor 
with  astonishment.  She  imagined  herself  to  be  at 
a  court  ball  at  Paris,  just  as  she  had  seen  it  at  the 
Louvre  when  a  child!  A  surging  mob  of  hundreds 
and  hundreds  of  young  odalisks  was  proudly  strut- 
ting to  and  fro  in  stylish  dresses  of  the  latest  fash- 
ion, in  long  gloves  and  silk  stockings.  Instead  of 
turbans,  plumed  hats  and  bouquets  adorned  the 
magnificent  masses  of  their  curled  and  frizzled 
locks.  They  moved  about  with  bare  shoulders  and 
bosoms,  in  soft  wavy  dresses,  with  fans  painted 
over  with  butterflies,  freely  laughing  and  jesting  in 
this,  to  them,  newest  of  worlds,  and  the  only  thing 
that  differentiated  this  ball  from  our  dancing  en- 
tertainments was  the  absence  of  the  darker  portion 
of  the  show — the  masculine  element. 

There  were  only  four  representatives  of  this 
sombre  nuance — to  wit,  the  Sultan,  the  heir  to  the 
throne,  the  Kizlar-Agasi,  and  the  Anaktar  Bey.  Of 
these  four,  two  were  no  longer  and  two  were  not 


A   BALL   IN   THE    SERAGLIO  215 

yet  men.  All  four  were  dressed  in  stiff  Hungarian 
dolmans,  long  black  pantaloons,  and  red  fezes. 
The  Sultan,  with  his  thick-set  figure,  would  have 
passed  very  well  for  a  substantial  Hungarian  depu- 
ty-lord-lieutenant, with  his  tight-fitting,  bulging 
dolman  buttoned  right  up  to  his  chin.  The  young 
prince's  elegant  figure,  on  the  other  hand,  was 
brought  into  strong  relief  by  his  well-made  suit ; 
his  hair  was  nicely  curled  on  both  sides,  and  his 
genteel  white  shirt  was  visible  beneath  his  open 
dolman.  The  Kizlar-Agasi,  on  the  contrary,  cut  a 
very  amusing  figure  in  his  unwonted  garb.  He 
was  constantly  endeavoring  to  thrust  his  hand  into 
his  girdle,  and  only  thus  perceived  that  he  had 
none,  and  he  kept  on  holding  down  the  tails  of  his 
coat,  as  if  he  felt  ashamed  that  they  might  not 
reach  low  enough  to  cover  him  decently. 

The  Sultana  Valideh  was  favorably  surprised. 
The  spectacle  brought  back  to  her  her  childish 
years,  and  she  gratefully  pressed  her  son  to  her 
bosom  for  this  delicate  attention,  while  he  respect- 
fully kissed  his  mother's  hands.  The  Sultan  scat- 
tered his  love  among  a  great  many  women,  but  his 
mother  alone  could  boast  of  possessing  his  respect. 

The  odalisks  surrounded  the  good  Sultan,  rejoic- 
ing and  caressing  him.  He  was  never  severe  to 
any  of  them — nay,  rather,  he  was  the  champion,  the 
defender  of  them  all,  and  those  whom  he  loved 
might  be  quite  sure  that  his  affection  would  be  con- 
stant. 

Every  one  tried  to  please  the  Sultana  Valideh  by 
showing  her  their  new  garments,  but  none  of  them 
found  such  favor  in  her  eyes  as  the  new  flower, 
which  had  only  recently  been  introduced  into  the 


2l6  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

Seraglio,  and  was  now  the  foremost  of  them  all,  the 
beautiful  Circassian  damsel.  Her  light  step,  the 
dove-like  droop  of  her  neck,  the  charm  of  her  full, 
round  shoulders,  and  her  lovely  young  bosom,  were 
such  that  one  was  almost  tempted  to  believe  that 
she  had  been  carried  off  bodily  from  some  Parisian 
salon,  where  they  know  so  well  how  to  take  the  ut- 
most advantage  of  all  the  resources  of  fashion. 
Her  locks  were  dressed  up  a  la  Vallierc,  with  neg- 
ligently falling  curls  which  gave  a  slightly  mascu- 
line expression  to  her  face — an  additional  charm  in 
the  eyes  of  a  connoisseur.  Yes,  the  Greek  mer- 
chant was  right ;  there  was  no  spot  on  the  earth 
worth  anything  except  the  place  where  Milieva 
lived  and  moved. 

The  Valideh  kissed  the  odalisk  on  the  forehead, 
and  led  her  by  the  hand  to  the  Sultan,  who  would 
not  permit  her  to  kiss  his  hand  (who  ever  heard  of 
a  lady  kissing  the  hand  of  a  gentleman  in  evening 
dress  ?),  but  permitted  the  young  heir  to  the  throne 
to  take  Milieva  on  his  arm  and  conduct  her  through 
the  room.  What  a  pretty  pair  of  children  they 
made !  Abdul  Mejid  at  this  time  was  scarce 
twelve  years  of  age,  the  girl  perhaps  was  fourteen  ; 
but  for  the  difference  of  their  clothes,  nobody  could 
have  said  which  was  the  boy  and  which  the  girl. 

And  now  the  tones  of  the  hidden  orchestra 
began  to  be  heard,  and  a  fresh  surprise  awaited  the 
Sultana.  She  heard  once  more  the  pianoforte 
melodies  which  she  had  known  long  ago,  and  the 
height  of  her  amazement  was  reached  when  the 
Sultan  invited  her  to  dance — a  minuet. 

What  an  absurd  idea !  The  Sultana  dowager  to 
dance  a  minuet  with  her  son,  the  Sultan,  before 


A   BALL   IN   THE    SERAGLIO  217 

all  those  laughing  odalisks,  who  had  never  beheld 
such  a  thing  before  ?  Where  was  the  second  couple  ? 
Why  here — the  prince  and  Milieva,  of  course.  They 
take  their  places  opposite  the  imperial  couple,  and 
to  slow,  dreamy  music,  with  great  dignity  they 
dance  together  the  courteous  and  melancholy 
dance,  bowing  and  courtesying  to  each  other  with 
as  much  majesty  and  aplomb  as  was  ever  displayed 
by  the  powdered  cavaliers  and  beauty  -  plastered 
goddesses  of  the  age  of  the  (Eil  de  Bceuf. 

Never  had  such  a  spectacle  been  seen  in  the 
Seraglio. 

The  Sultana  herself  was  amazed  at  the  trium- 
phant dexterity  which  Milieva  displayed  in  the 
dance ;  she  was  a  consummate  maid  of  honor,  with 
that  princely  smile  for  which  Gabrielle  D'Estrees 
was  once  so  famous.  The  good  Mahmoud  so  lost 
himself  in  the  contemplation  of  the  eyes  of  Milieva, 
his  vis-a-vis,  that  towards  the  end  of  the  dance  he 
quite  forgot  his  own  part  in  it,  folding  Milieva  to 
his  breast  in  defiance  of  all  rule  and  ceremony,  and. 
even  kissing  her  face  twice  or  thrice,  although  he 
ought  not  to  have  gone  beyond  kissing  her  hand — 
nay,  he  ought  not  to  have  kissed  her  hand  at  all, 
but  the  hand  of  his  partner,  the  Sultana  Valideh. 

When  the  minuet  was  over  the  eunuch  musicians 
played  a  waltz  in  which  all  the  odalisks  took  part, 
clinging  to  one  another  in  couples,  and  thus  they 
danced  the  pretty  trois  pas  dance,  for  the  deux  pas 
revolution  was  the  invention  of  a  later  and  more 
progressive  age.  Louder  than  the  music  was  the 
joyous  uproar  of  the  dancers  themselves.  Here 
and  there  some  of  them  tumbled  on  the  slippery 
floor  to  which  they  were  not  accustomed,  and  the 


2l8  THE   LION   OF  JANINA 

nymphs  coming  after  them  fell  around  them  in 
heaps.  Some  disliked  the  dance  or  were  weary, 
but  their  firier  and  more  robust  partners  dragged 
them  along,  willy-nilly.  The  old  Kizlar-Agasi  and 
the  bey  stood  in  the  midst  of  them  to  take  care 
that  no  scandal  took  place.  Suddenly  the  madcap 
odalisk  army  surrounded  them,  clung  on  to  them 
in  twos  and  threes,  dragged  them  into  the  mad 
waltz,  and  twisted  them  round  and  round  at  a 
galloping  pace,  till  the  two  good  old  gentlemen 
had  no  more  breath  left  in  them. 

The  Sultan  and  the  Valideh,  with  the  prince 
and  Milieva,  were  sitting  on  a  raised  dai's,  laughing 
and  looking  on  at  the  merry  spectacle.  The  pipers 
piped  more  briskly,  the  drummers  drummed  more 
furiously,  the  cymbals  clashed  more  loudly  than 
ever,  while  the  odalisks  dragged  their  prey  about 
uproariously. 

Ah  !    Listen  !   What  didst  thou  hear,  good  Sultan  ? 

What  noise  is  that  outside  which  mingles  with  the 

.hubbub  within?     Outside  there  also  is  to  be  heard 

the  roll  of  drums,  the  flourish  of  trumpets,  and  the 

shouts  of  men. 

Nonsense  !  'Tis  but  imagination.  Bring  hither 
the  glasses — not  those  tiny  cups  of  sherbet,  for  this 
is  the  birthday  of  the  Valideh.  We  will  be  Euro- 
peans to-night.  Bring  hither  wine  and  glasses  for 
a  toast ! 

The  Sultan  had  a  particular  fondness  for  To- 
kay and  champagne,  and  the  ambassadors  of  both 
these  great  Powers  had  the  greatest  influence  with 
him. 

The  odalisks  also  had  to  be  made  to  taste  these 
wines ;  and  after  that  the  dance  proceeded  more 


A    BALL    IN    THE    SERAGLIO  219 

merrily,  and  the  boisterous  music  and  singing  grew 
madder  and  madder. 

What  was  that  ? 

The  Sultan  grew  attentive.  What  uproar  is  that 
outside  the  Seraglio  ?  What  light  is  that  which 
shines  at  the  top  of  the  round  windows? 

That  uproar  is  no  beating  of  drums  ;  those  shouts 
are  not  the  shouts  of  revellers  ;  that  din  is  not  the 
beating  of  cymbals  ;  no,  'tis  the  clashing  of  swords, 
the  thundering  of  cannons,  the  tumult  of  a  siege, 
and  that  light  is  not  the  light  of  bonfires  but  of 
blazing  rafters  ! 

Up,  up,  Mahmoud,  from  thy  sofa !  Away  with 
thy  glass  and  out  with  thy  sword  !  This  is  no 
night  for  revelry  ;  death  is  abroad  ;  insurrection  is 
at  thy  very  gate  !  They  are  besieging  the  Seraglio  ! 

Twelve  thousand  Janissaries,  joined  with  the  rab- 
ble of  Stambul,  are  attacking  the  gates  at  the  very 
time  when  the  orchestra  is  playing  its  liveliest  airs 
in  the  illuminated  hall. 

"  Do  ye  hear  that  ?"  exclaimed  Kara  Malian,  the 
most  famous  orator  of  the  Janissaries,  who  with  his 
own  hand  had  hung  up  the  Metropolitan  of  Con- 
stantinople on  the  very  threshold  of  the  palace. 
"Do  ye  hear  that  music?  Here  they  are  rejoicing 
when  the  whole  empire  around  them  is  in  mourning. 
Do  ye  know  what  are  the  latest  tidings  this  night  ? 
The  Suliotes  have  captured  Gaskho  Bey,  and  anni- 
hilated our  army  before  Janina.  A  woman  has 
blown  up  the  ship  of  the  Kapudan  Pasha,  and  the 
Shah  has  fallen  upon  Kermandzhan  with  an  army  ! 
Destruction  is  drawing  near  to  us,  and  treachery 
dwells  in  the  Seraglio.  Hearken  !  They  dance,  they 
sing,  they  bathe  their  lips  in  wine,  and  their  bias- 


220  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

phemies  bring  upon  us  the  scourge  of  Allah  !  We 
shed  our  tears  and  our  blood,  and  they  make  merry 
and  mock  at  us  !  Shall  not  they  also  weep  ?  Shall 
not  their  blood  also  be  shed  ?  So  fare  it  with  them 
as  it  has  fared  with  our  brethren  whom  they  sent 
to  the  shambles  !" 

The  furious  mob  answered  these  seditious  words 
with  an  indescribable  bellowing. 

"  If  we  traversed  the  whole  empire  we  should  not 
find  a  worse  spot  than  this  place." 

"Set  fire  to  the  Seraglio!"  cried  one  voice  sud- 
denly, and  the  others  took  up  the  cry. 

"And  if  you  escape  from  all  other  enemies,  would 
you  fall  into  the  claws  of  the  worst  enemies  of  all?" 

"  Death  to  the  Viziers  !  Death  to  the  lords  of 
the  palace  !"  thundered  the  people  ;  and  one  voice 
close  to  Kara  Makan,  rising  above  the  others,  ex- 
claimed, "  Death  to  the  Sultan  !" 

Kara  Makan  turned  in  that  direction  and  de- 
fended his  master.  "  Hurt  not  the  Sultan  !  The 
life  of  the  Sultan  is  sacred.  He  and  his  children 
are  the  last  survivors  of  the  blood  of  Omar ;  and 
although  he  be  not  worthy  to  sit  on  the  throne 
which  the  heroic  Muhammad  erected  for  his  de- 
scendants, yet  he  is  the  last  of  his  race,  and,  there- 
fore, the  head  of  the  Sultan  is  sacred.  But  death 
upon  the  head  of  the  Reis-Effendi,  death  to  the 
Kizlar-Agasi  and  the  Kapudan  Pasha  !  They  are  the 
cause  of  our  desolation.  The  chiefs  of  the  Giaours 
pay  them  to  destroy  their  country.  Tear  all  these 
up  by  the  roots,  and  if  there  be  any  children  of  their 
family,  destroy  them  also,  even  to  the  very  babes 
and  sucklings,  that  the  memory  of  them  may  perish 
utterly !" 


A    BALL    IN    THE    SERAGLIO  221 

The  mob  thundered  angrily  at  the  gates  of  the 
Seraglio,  which  were  shut  and  fastened  with  chains. 
The  Janissaries  blew  the  horns  of  revolt,  the  drums 
rolled,  and  within  there  the  Sultan  was  reposing 
his  head  on  the  bosom  of  a  beautiful  girl.  Suddenly 
a  loud  report  shook  the  whole  Seraglio.  An  auda- 
cious ichoglan  had  fired  his  gun  upon  the  mob  as  it 
rushed  to  attack  the  water-gate. 

The  Sultan,  in  dismay,  quitted  the  harem,  and 
hastened  to  the  middle  gate  in  order  to  address  the 
mob.  On  his  way  through  the  corridor,  his  servants 
and  his  ministers  threw  themselves  at  his  feet  and 
implored  him  not  to  show  himself  to  the  people. 
Mahmoud  did  not  listen  to  them.  In  the  confusion 
of  the  moment,  moreover,  it  never  occurred  to  him 
that  he  was  wearing  a  Prankish  costume,  which  the 
people  hated  and  execrated. 

When  he  appeared  on  the  balcony  the  light  of  the 
torches  fell  full  upon  him,  and  the  Janissaries  recog- 
nized him.  Every  one  at  once  pointed  their  fingers 
at  him,  and  immediately  an  angry  and  scornful  howl 
arose. 

"  Look  !  that  is  the  Sultan  !  Behold  the  Caliph— 
the  Caliph,  the  Padishah  of  the  Moslems — in  the 
garb  of  the  Giaours !  That  is  Mahmoud,  th.e  ally  of 
our  enemies  !" 

The  Sultan  shrank  before  this  furious  uproar  of 
the  mob,  and,  involuntarily  falling  back,  stammered, 
pale  as  death  : 

"  With  what  shall  we  allay  this  tempest  ?" 

His  servants,  with  quivering  lips,  stood  around 
him.  At  that  moment  they  neither  feared  nor  re- 
spected their  master. 

Suddenly  a  bold  young  ichoglan  rushed  towards 


222  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

the  Sultan,  and  answered  his  question  in  a  coura- 
geous and  confident  voice  : 

"  With  swords,  with  guns,  with  weapons  !" 

It  was  Thomar. 

The  Sultan  scrutinized  the  youth  from  head  to 
foot,  amazed  at  his  audacity  ;  then  hastening  back 
to  his  dressing-chamber,  exchanged  his  ball  dress 
for  his  royal  robes,  and,  coming  back  from  the  inner 
apartments,  descended  into  the  court-yard. 

The  guns  were  already  pointed  at  the  gates,  the 
topijis  stood  beside  them,  match  in  hand,  impatient- 
ly awaiting  the  order  to  fire. 

When  the  Sultan  appeared  in  the  court-yard  he 
was  at  once  surrounded  by  some  hundreds  of  the 
ichoglanler,  determined  to  defend  him  to  the  last 
drop  of  their  blood.  Mahmoud  again  recognized 
Thomar  among  them  ;  he  appeared  to  be  the  leading 
spirit  of  the  band. 

The  Sultan  beckoned  to  them  to  put  back  their 
swords  in  their  sheaths.  He  commanded  the  topijis 
to  extinguish  their  matches.  Next  he  ordered  that 
the  gate  of  the  Seraglio  should  be  thrown  open  to 
the  people.  Then,  having  bidden  every  one  to  stand 
aside,  he  went  alone  towards  the  gate  in  his  im- 
perial robes,  with  a  majestic  bearing. 

No  sooner  was  the  gate  thrown  open  than  the 
mob  streamed  into  the  court-yard  with  torches  a»d 
flashing  weapons  in  their  hands,  standing  for  a  mo- 
ment dumb  with  astonishment  at  the  appearance 
of  the  Sultan.  He  was  no  longer  ridiculous,  as 
he  had  been  in  that  foreign  garb.  The  majestic 
bearing  of  the  prince  stilled  the  tumult  for  an  in- 
stant, but  for  an  instant  only.  The  following  mo- 
ment a  hand  was  extended  from  among  the  mob 


A   BALL   IN   THE    SERAGLIO  223 

of  rebels  which  tore  the  Sultan's  caftan  from  his 
shoulder. 

Mahmoud  grew  pale  at  this  audacity,  and  this 
pallor  was  a  fresh  occasion  of  danger  to  him,  for 
now  he  was  suddenly  seized  from  all  sides.  The 
Sultan  turned,  therefore,  and  perceiving  Thomar, 
called  to  him,  "  Defend  my  harem  !"  and,  at  the 
same  time  freeing  his  sword-arm,  he  drew  his  sword, 
waved  it  above  his  hand,  and,  while  his  foes  were 
waiting  to  see  on  whom  the  blow  would  fall,  he  threw 
the  sword  to  Thomar,  exclaiming,  "Defend  my  son  !" 

The  young  ichoglan  grasped  Mahmoud's  sword, 
and,  while  the  captured  Sultan  disappeared  in  the 
mazes  of  the  mob,  he  and  his  comrades  returned  to 
the  inner  court -yard,  and,  barricading  the  door, 
fiercely  defended  the  position  against  the  insur- 
gents. He  had  now  to  show  himself  worthy  of  that 
sword,  the  sword  of  the  Sultan. 

Gradually  two  thousand  ichoglanler  and  three 
thousand  bostanjis  gathered  round  the  young  hero. 
The  Janissaries  already  lay  in  heaps  before  the  door, 
which  they  riddled  with  bullets  till  it  looked  like  a 
corn-sifter.  But  the  youths  of  the  Seraglio  repelled 
every  onset. 

And  why  did  not  the  Sultan  remain  with  them? 
They  would  have  defended  him  against  all  the  world. 
Who  knew  now  what  had  become  of  him  ?  Perhaps 
they  had  killed  him  outright. 

The  Janissaries  speedily  perceived  that  they 
could  not  have  done  anything  worse  for  themselves 
than  to  have  brought  torches  with  them,  for  there- 
by they  were  distinctly  visible  to  the  defenders  of 
the  Seraglio,  and  every  shot  that  came  from  thence 
told. 


224  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

"  Put  out  the  torches  !"  shouted  Kara  Makan,  who 
was  holding  a  huge  concave  buckler  in  front  of  him, 
and  felt  a  third  bullet  pierce  through  the  twofold 
layers  of  buffalo-hide  and  graze  his  body. 

The  torches  went  out  one  after  another,  where- 
upon the  spacious  court-yard  was  darkened;  only 
the  flash  of  firearms  cast  an  occasional  gleam  of 
light  upon  the  struggling  mass. 

It  might  have  been  two  hours  after  midnight 
when  suddenly  there  was  a  cessation  of  hostilities. 
Both  sides  were  weary,  and  ceased  firing ;  the  Jan- 
issaries whispered  amongst  themselves,  and  at  last, 
in  the  midst  of  a  deep  silence,  Kara  Makan's  thun- 
derous voice  made  itself  heard  : 

"  Listen,  all  of  ye  who  are  inside  the  Seraglio. 
Ye  are  good  warriors,  and  we  are  good  warriors 
also,  and  it  is  folly  for  the  Faithful  to  destroy  one 
another.  We  did  not  take  up  arms  to  slay  you  and 
plunder  the  Seraglio,  neither  do  we  wish  to  kill  the 
Padishah  nor  the  heir  to  the  throne  ;  but  we  would 
rescue  them  from  the  hands  of  the  traitors  who 
surround  them,  and  we  would  also  deliver  the  realm 
from  faithless  Viziers  and  counsellors.  Give  us, 
therefore,  the  prince,  the  Sultan's  son.  Of  a  truth 
no  harm  shall  befall  him,  and  we  will  thereupon  quit 
the  court-yard  of  the  Seraglio  and  trouble  nobody 
within  these  doors.  If,  however,  you  will  not  grant 
our  request,  then  Allah  be  merciful  to  all  who  are 
within  these  beleaguered  walls." 

The  Kizlar-Agasi  conveyed  this  message  into  the 
Seraglio,  and  besiegers  and  besieged  awaited  with 
rapt  attention  the  reply  of  the  Valideh  ;  for  the  de- 
cision lay  with  her — she  was  superior  in  rank  to  all 
four  Of  the  Asseki  sultanas. 


A   BALL   IN   THE   SERAGLIO  225 

After  the  lapse  of  a  quarter  of  an  hour  the  Kizlar- 
Agasi  returned,  and  signified  to  the  besiegers  that 
the  prince  would  be  handed  over  to  them. 

The  Janissaries  received  this  message  with  a  howl 
of  triumph,  while  the  ichoglanler  shrugged  their 
shoulders. 

"  They  are  not  all  women  in  there  for  nothing," 
said  Thomar,  savagely,  to  the  Kizlar-Agasi,  and  he 
remained  standing  in  the  gate,  that  he  might,  at 
any  rate,  kiss  the  young  prince's  hand  and  whisper 
to  him  not  to  go. 

The  Janissaries  relit  their  torches  and  crowded 
towards  the  gate.  Inside  reigned  a  pitch  -  black 
darkness. 

Not  long  afterwards  footsteps  were  audible  in  the 
dark  corridor,  and,  escorted  by  two  torch-bearers, 
the  prince  descended  the  steps.  He  had  on  the 
same  garment  which  he  wore  when  he  went  on 
horseback  to  the  Mosque  of  Sophia  during  the  Feast 
of  Bairam.  How  the  people  had  then  huzzahed  be- 
fore him !  He  wore  pantaloons  of  rose-colored 
silk,  yellow  buskins  with  slender  heels,  a  green  caf- 
tan embroidered  with  gold  flowers,  and  a  handsome 
yellow  silk  vest  buttoned  up  to  his  chin.  His  ribbons 
and  buttons  were  made  so  as  to  represent  brilliant 
fluttering  butterflies  incrusted  with  precious  stones. 

On  reaching  the  gate  he  beckoned  to  the  torch- 
bearers  to  stand  still,  sent  back  the  Kizlar-Agasi, 
and,  proceeding  all  alone  to  the  gate,  commanded 
that  it  should  be  flung  open. 

While    this    was    being    done   Thomar    pressed 
close   up  to  him,  and   seizing   the   prince's   hand, 
kissed  it,  at  the  same  time  whispering  in  his  ear, 
"Go  not ;  we  will  defend  you  if  you  remain  here." 
15 


226  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

The  prince  pressed  Thomar's  hand  and  whis- 
pered back,  "  I  must  go  ;  you  keep  on  defending 
the  Seraglio  !"  And  with  that  he  embraced  the 
youth  and  kissed  him  twice  with  great  fervor. 

Thomar  was  somewhat  startled  by  this  burning, 
affectionate  kiss,  and  wondered  what  it  meant. 
The  darkness  did  not  allow  him  to  distinguish  the 
prince's  features  ;  and  when  he  tried  to  detain  him 
once  more  the  prince  hastily  disengaged  himself 
and  stepped  forth  from  under  the  dark  vault  among 
the  Janissaries. 

Thomar  covered  his  eyes  with  his  hands ;  he 
did  not  want  to  see  the  fate  of  the  prince  at  that 
moment.  It  was  quite  possible  that  the  blood- 
thirsty might  cut  him  down  on  the  spot  in  a  sud- 
den access  of  fury. 

The  prince  stepped  forth  among  the  rebels. 

At  that  moment  a  cry  of  unbridled  joy,  triumph, 
and  blood-thirstiness  burst  from  the  Janissaries.  It 
needed  but  one  of  them  to  raise  his  hand,  and  the 
next  would  speedily  have  completed  the  bloodiest 
deed  of  all. 

But  the  prince  stood  before  them  haughtily  and 
valiantly,  and,  with  amazing  audacity,  cried  to 
them,  "  Down  on  your  knees  before  me,  ye  rebels  !" 

At  these  words  Thomar,  with  a  start  of  terror, 
looked  at  the  prince.  The  full  light  of  the  torches 
fell  upon  his  charming  face.  It  was  not  Abdul 
Mejid,  but  —  Milieva  !  They  had  dressed  her  in- 
side the  harem  in  garments  suitable  to  the  Feast 
of  Bairam,  and  she  had  come  out  instead  of  the 
prince,  courageously,  as  if  she  had  been  born  to  it. 
Who  was  likely  to  notice  the  change  ?  The  heart 
of  this  odalisk  loved  to  play  a  manly  part,  and  it 


A   BALL   IN   THE    SERAGLIO  227 

was  not  merely  the  masculine  garb  she  wore  which 
transformed  her,  but  the  masculine  soul  within  her. 

The  Janissaries,  moreover,  were  dumfounded  by 
this  bold  attitude.  This  graceful,  noble  figure 
stood  face  to  face  with  them  and  domineered  the 
mob  with  a  commanding  look,  proudly,  majesti- 
cally, as  became  a  born  ruler.  And  yet  death 
hovered  over  the  head  of  him  who  dared  to  say, 
"I  am  the  prince  !" 

Thomar,  forgetting  himself,  seized  his  sword,  and 
would  have  rushed  to  the  defence  of  his  sister  but 
his  comrades  held  him  back.  "  What  would  you  do, 
unhappy  wretch  ?  Trust  to  Fate  !" 

Kara  Makan,  in  savage  defiance,  approached  the 
false  prince  with  a  drawn  sword  in  his  hand. 

"  On  your  knees  before  me  !"  cried  the  odalisk, 
and  indicating  where  he  should  kneel  with  an  im- 
perious gesture,  she  looked  steadily  into  the  eyes 
of  the  savage  warrior. 

The  ferocious  figure  stood  hesitatingly  before 
her.  The  magic  of  her  look  held  the  wild  beast 
in  him  spellbound  for  an  instant.  His  bloodshot 
eyes  slowly  drooped,  his  hand,  with  its  flashing 
sword,  sank  down  by  his  side,  his  knees  gave  way 
beneath  him,  and,  falling  down  at  the  feet  of  the 
young  child,  he  submissively  murmured  a  salaam, 
kissing  her  hand  and  laying  his  bloody  sword  at 
her  feet. 

Milieva  pressed  her  right  hand  on  the  head  of  the 
subdued  rebel,  looked  proudly  and  fearlessly  upon 
the  dumb -stricken  rebels,  and  then,  raising  the 
sword  and  giving  it  back  to  Kara  Makan,  she  cried, 
"  Go  before  and  open  a  way  for  me  !" 

As  if  in  obedience  to  a  magic  word,  the  crowd 


228  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

parted  on  both  sides  before  her,  and  Kara  Makan, 
with  his  sword  over  his  shoulder,  led  the  way  along. 
The  crowd,  with  an  involuntary  homage,  made  way 
for  her  everywhere  from  the  Seraglio  to  the  Seven 
Towers,  and  two  torch-bearers  walked  by  her  side, 
between  whom  she  marched  as  proudly  as  if  she 
were  making  her  triumphal  progress.  Nobody 
perceived  the  deception.  The  resemblance  of  the 
young  face  to  that  of  the  prince,  the  well-known 
festal  raiment  of  the  Feast  of  Bairam,  her  manly 
bearing,  all  combined  to  keep  up  the  delusion,  and 
amongst  this  canaille  which  held  her  in  its  power 
there  was  not  a  single  dignitary  who  knew  the 
prince  intimately  and  might  have  detected  the 
fraud. 

The  Sultan  had  just  been  thrust  into  the  dun- 
geon of  the  Seven  Towers,  that  place  of  dismal 
memories  for  the  Sultans  and  their  families  in  gen- 
eral. In  that  octagonal  chamber,  whose  round  win- 
dows overlooked  the  sea,  more  than  one  mortal 
sigh  had  escaped  from  the  lips  of  the  descendants 
of  Omar,  whom  a  powerful  faction  or  a  triumphant 
rival  had,  sooner  or  later,  condemned  to  death. 

It  was  now  morning,  the  uproar  of  the  rebellion 
had  died  away  outside,  the  Seraglio  was  no  longer 
besieged.  It  was  now  that  Kara  Makan  appeared 
before  the  Sultan. 

The  Padishah  was  sitting  on  the  ground — on  the 
bare  ground.  His  royal  robes  were  still  upon  him, 
a  diamond  aigrette  sparkled  in  the  turban  of  the 
Caliph,  and  there  he  sat  upon  the  ground,  and  never 
took  his  eyes  off  it. 

"  Your  majesty  !"  cried  Kara  Makan,  addressing 
him. 


A    BALL    IN    THE    SERAGLIO  22p 

The  Padishah,  as  if  he  had  not  heard,  looked 
apathetically  in  front  of  him,  and  not  a  muscle  of 
his  face  changed. 

"  Sire,  I  stand  before  thee  to  speak  to  thee  in  the 
name  of  the  Moslem  people." 

He  might  just  as  well  have  been  speaking  to  a 
marble  statue. 

"  Every  storm  proceeds  from  Allah,  sire,  and 
nothing  which  Allah  does  is  done  without  cause. 
When  the  lightnings  are  scattered  abroad  from  the 
hands  of  the  angel  Adramelech,  is  not  the  air  be- 
neath them  heavy  with  curses  ?  and  when  the  liv- 
ing earth  quakes  beneath  the  towns  that  are  upon 
it,  shall  not  innocently  spilled  blood  shake  it  still 
more?  So  also  the  Moslem  people  rising  in  rebel- 
lion is  the  instrument  of  Allah,  and  Allah  knoweth 
the  causes  thereof.  I  will  guard  my  tongue  against 
telling  these  causes  to  thee ;  thou  knowest  them 
right  well  already,  nor  is  it  for  me  to  reprove  the 
anointed  successor  of  the  Prophet.  But  I  beg  thee, 
sire,  to  promise  me  and  the  people,  in  the  name  of 
Allah,  that  thou  wilt  do  what  it  beseemeth  the  ruler 
of  the  Ottoman  nation  to  do — promise  to  remedy 
our  wrongs,  and  we  will  set  thee  again  upon  thy 
throne." 

At  these  words  Mahmoud  fixed  his  eyes  upon 
the  speaker,  and  gazed  long  upon  those  dark  feat- 
ures, as  sinister  as  an  eclipse  of  the  sun.  Then  he 
arose,  turned  away,  and  replied  in  a  low  voice,  hiss- 
ing with  contempt : 

"  The  Sultan  owes  no  reply  to  his  servants." 

Kara  Makan's  face  was  convulsed  at  these  words. 
Scarce  was  he  able  to  stifle  his  wrath,  and  he  re- 
plied, in  broken  sentences : 


230  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

"  Sire,  the  lion  is  the  king  of  the  desert — but  if 
he  is  in  a  cage — he  listens  to  the  voice  of  his  keeper 
— thou  knowest  this  hand,  which  hath  fought  for 
thee  in  many  engagements — and  thou  knowest  that 
whatever  this  hand  seizeth  it  seizeth  with  a  grasp 
of  iron." 

The  Sultan  pondered  long.  Then  all  at  once 
he  seemed  to  bethink  him  of  something,  for  his 
face  seemed  to  lose  its  severity,  and  he  turned  tow- 
ards the  Janissary  leader  with  a  mild,  indulgent 
look. 

"What,  then,  dost  thou  require  ?"  This  softened 
look  concealed  the  genesis  of  the  thought — the 
Janissaries  must  be  wiped  off  the  face  of  the  earth. 
''  What  dost  thou  require  ?"  said  the  Padishah,  softly. 

Kara  Makan  put  on  an  important  look,  as  of  one 
who  knows  that  the  fate  of  empires  is  in  his  hands. 

"  Hearken  to  our  desires.  We  are  honest  Mussul- 
mans. We  do  not  ask  impossibilities.  If  thou 
canst  convince  us  that  our  demands  are  unlawful, 
we  renounce  them  ;  if  thou  canst  not  convince  us, 
accomplish  them." 

Mahmoud's  lips  wore  a  bitter  smile  at  this  wise 
speech. 

"I  do  not  strive  with  you,"  he  replied.  "Ye 
command  me.  The  Caliph  of  caliphs  listens  to 
his  servants.  Bring  hither  parchment  and  an  ink- 
horn,  and  dictate  to  my  pen  what  ye  demand.  The 
Sultan  will  be  your  scribe,  great  rebel !" 

Kara  Makan  was  not  bright  enough  to  penetrate 
the  irony  of  these  words ;  nay,  rather,  he  felt  himself 
flattered  by  the  humility  of  the  Sultan's  speech. 
With  haughty  self-assurance  he  bared  his  bosom 
and  drew  forth  a  large  roll  of  manuscript. 


A   BALL   IN   THE   SERAGLIO  231 

"  I  will  save  your  majesty  the  trouble,"  said  he 
to  Mahmoud,  smoothing  out  the  document  before 
him.  "  Behold,  it  is  all  ready.  Thou  hast  only  to 
write  thy  name  beneath  it." 

"Will  ye  allow  me  to  read  it?"  inquired  the 
Sultan,  with  the  same  bitter  smile ;  "  or  is  it  the 
wish  of  the  people  that  I  should  sign  it  unread  ?" 

"  As  your  majesty  pleases." 

Mahmoud  took  up  the  documents  one  after  an- 
other, and  piled  them  up  beside  him  as  he  read 
them. 

"Ah!  the  appointment  of  a  new  seraskier  !  I 
will  read  no  further.  I  agree,  but  I  would  know 
his  name.  Is  he  whom  you  desire  fit  for  the  post  ?" 

"We  want  Kurshid,"  explained  Kara  Makan, 
perceiving  that  the  Sultan  had  not  read  the  docu- 
ment. 

"  And  the  Janissaries  demand  other  rewards  for 
themselves.  'Tis  only  natural  :  I  grant  them. 
They  cannot  be  expected  to  storm  the  Seraglio 
for  nothing.  The  chief  treasurer  will  pay  you 
whatever  you  require.  This  third  article,  too,  I 
see,  demands  the  capture  of  Janina.  Be  it  so.  I 
grant  it.  Most  probably  the  whole  Janissary  host 
will  want  to  go  against  Ali  Pasha." 

"  So  long  as  thou  art  at  their  head,"  said  Kara 
Makan,  somewhat  disturbed.  "  The  Janissaries  are 
only  bound  to  fight  under  the  direct  command  of 
the  Sultan." 

"  And  all  these  other  demands  are  equally  reason- 
able, eh  ?"  said  the  Sultan,  just  glancing  at  one  or 
two  of  them. 

He  took  up  the  last  one,  but  when  he  had  un- 
folded it  his  face  darkened,  and  he  suddenly  leaped 


232  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

to  his  feet,  his  good-natured  apathy  changed  into 
Avrath  and  fierceness,  and,  striking  the  open  docu- 
ment with  his  fist,  he  exclaimed,  with  an  access  of 
emotion  : 

"  What's  this  ?  Are  ye  so  bold  as  to  expect  me 
to  sign  this  paper  ?" 

Kara  Makan  was  so  well  prepared  for  this  out- 
burst of  anger  on  the  Sultan's  part  that  he  was  not 
in  the  least  taken  aback.  With  rustic  stolidity  he 
replied  : 

"We  wish  it,  and  we  demand  it." 

"  Do  you  know  what  is  written  in  this  docu- 
ment?" 

"  Yes ;  that  thou  must  free  the  realm  from  for- 
eigners ;  that  thou  must  put  the  Russian  ambas- 
sador Stroganov  on  board  ship  and  send  him  home  ; 
refuse  to  admit  French  and  English  ships  into  the 
Bejkoz ;  send  the  Sultana  Valideh  far  away  to 
Damascus  ;  and  slay  the  Grand  Vizier,  the  Kizlar- 
Aga,  the  Berber  Pasha,  and  the  Kapudan  Pasha, 
and  give  their  bodies  to  the  people." 

The  Grand  Signior  contemptuously  threw  the 
document  to  the  floor  and  trampled  it  beneath  his 
feet. 

"  Shameless  filibustered,"  he  cried ;  "  not  blood 
but  money  is  what  you  want.  Ye  want  permission 
not  to  deliver  the  realm,  but  to. plunder  it.  And 
you  expect  the  Padishah  to  sanction  it !  Did  not 
you  yourselves  raise  the  Viziers  to  power  ?  Were 
not  you  the  cause  of  their  not  being  able  to  make 
any  use  of  that  power  ?  Whenever  the  arms  of  the 
Giaours  were  triumphant,  were  you  not  always  the 
first  to  fly  from  the  field  of  battle?  And  when 
the  realm  was  sinking,  were  you  not  always  the 


A    BALL    IN    THE    SERAGLIO  233 

last  to  hasten  to  its  assistance?  You  are  no  de- 
scendants, but  the  mere  shadows  of  those  glorious 
Janissaries  whose  names  are  written  with  letters  of 
blood  in  the  annals  of  foreign  nations;  but  ye  make 
but  a  poor  and  wretched  figure  therein.  Kill  me, 
then  !  I  shall  not  be  the  first  Sultan  whom  the 
Janissaries  have  murdered,  but,  in  Allah's  name  I 
say  it,  I  shall  be  the  last.  After  me,  either  nobody 
will  sit  on  the  throne  of  Omar,  or,  if  any  one  sits 
there,  he  will  be  your  ruin." 

The  opposition  of  his  august  captive  only  restored 
the  Janissary  leader  to  his  proper  element.  He  felt 
much  more  at  home  with  those  wrathful  eyes  than 
with  the  previous  contemptuous  nonchalance.  He 
could  now  give  back  like  for  like. 

He  picked  up  the  crumpled  document,  in  which 
were  written  the  death  -  sentences  of  the  Viziers, 
and,  brushing  off  the  dust,  again  presented  it  to  the 
Sultan. 

"  Either  sign  this  document  or  descend  from  the 
throne  of  the  family  of  Omar,  and  we  will  seek  us 
out  from  among  the  descendants  of  the  Prophet 
another  who  shall  reign  in  thy  stead." 

"  Most  abject  of  slaves  !  In  thy  pride  thou  know- 
est  not  what  thou  sayest  !  Death  comes  from  Allah 
and  none  can  avoid  it ;  but  who  amongst  the  descend- 
ants of  Omar  would  be  powerful  enough  to  seize  the 
royal  sceptre,  and  who  would  be  senseless  enough  to 
desire  it  ?" 

"  Look  at  me." 

"  I  am  looking.  The  sun  does  not  soil  itself  by 
shining  upon  a  swamp,  and  therefore  I  may  look 
even  at  thee  ;  but  I  see  nothing  in  thee  that  would 
justify  the  adorning  of  thy  head  with  a  diadem  so 


234  THE    LION    OP   JANINA 

long  as  one  of  the  descendants  of  Sulaiman  the 
Magnificent  is  alive." 

"Another  word  and  thou  shalt  cease  to  live!" 
cried  the  desperado,  haughtily  throwing  back  his 
head  before  the  Sultan.  "  Art  thou  aware  that  thy 
son  Abdul  Mejid  is  in  our  hands  ?" 

The  Sultan  shuddered.  His  consternation  at 
these  words  was  written  in  every  feature. 

"  My  son,  Abdul  Mejid  ?     Impossible  !" 

"  So  it  is.  The  Sultana  Valideh  gave  him  up  at 
our  request." 

"  Oh,  madness  !"  exclaimed  the  Sultan  ;  and  he 
began  pacing  to  and  fro. 

Abdul  Mejid  was  still  a  mere  child.  The  shock 
of  such  a  rebellion  might  easily  make  an  epileptic 
of  him.  To  deliver  him  into  the  hands  of  these 
rebels  was  as  good  as  to  sign  his  death  -  warrant. 
Even  if  they  did  not  kill  him  outright,  his  nerves 
might  suffer  from  their  violence,  and  he  might 
perish,  as  the  two  and  twenty  other  children  of 
Sultan  Mahmoud  had  perished,  every  one  of  whom 
had  died  of  epilepsy.  Their  delicate  nervous  con- 
stitutions had  been  shattered  in  their  youth  under 
the  influence  of  that  perpetual  terror  to  which  the 
children  of  the  Caliph  of  caliphs  had  been  exposed 
from  time  immemorial.  What,  then,  might  not 
happen  to  Abdul  Mejid  if  he  fell  into'the  hands  of 
this  savage  mob  ? 

"  Oh,  ye  are  hell's  own  children  !  Ye  are  worse 
than  the  Giaours,  worse  than  the  Greeks,  worse 
than  the  Muscovites  !  Ye  do  place  your  feet  on 
the  heads  of  your  rulers  !" 

The  despair  of  the  Sultan  emboldened  the  Janis- 
sary still  further. 


A   BALL   IN   THE    SERAGLIO  235 

"  Sign  this  document,  or  thy  son  shall  die  in  our 
hands  !" 

"  Miserable  cowards  !"  moaned  the  Sultan.  "  And 
cowards  they  also  who  should  have  defended  him  ! 
Did  not  even  his  mother  defend  him  ?  Was  it  neces- 
sary to  give  him  up  ?" 

"  He  is  in  no  danger,"  said  Kara  Makan  ;  "  nay, 
he  is  in  a  safe  place.  It  rests  with  thee  to  receive 
him  back  into  thy  arms ;"  and  he  shoved  towards 
him  again  the  soiled  and  crumpled  manuscript. 

The  Padishah,  overcome  by  the  shock  of  his  own 
feelings,  humiliated  by  the  sense  of  his  own  soft- 
heartedness,  tottered  to  the  wall,  and  when  his 
groping  hands  came  in  contact  with  the  cold  mar- 
ble he  collapsed  altogether,  and  leaning  against 
it,  he  pressed  his  burning  temples  to  the  cold 
stone.  The  Janissary  might  now  say  whatever  he 
would,  the  Sultan  neither  listened  to  nor  answered 
him. 

At  last  the  rough  warrior,  who  had  jumped  so 
suddenly  into  power,  shouted  angrily  to  his  com- 
rades, who  were  cooling  their  heels  outside,  "  Bring 
hither  the  prince  !" 

The  Sultan  heard  the  pattering  of  many  foot- 
steps in  the  corridor  outside,  and  the  clashing  of 
swords  mingled  with  the  murmuring  of  voices,  but 
he  did  not  look  in  that  direction. 

"  Behold  !"  cried  Kara  Makan,  advancing  towards 
him,  "  here  is  thy  son  !  A  drawn  sword  hovers 
above  his  head  !  Choose  either  to  see  thine  own 
name  at  the  foot  of  that  paper  or  his  head  at  thy 
feet !" 

Mahmoud  trembled,  but  he  answered  nothing, 
nor  did  he  turn  his  head. 


236  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

"Write,  or  thy  son  dies  !"  cried  a  number  of  the 
Janissaries,  suddenly. 

Then  a  musical,  familiar  voice  responded  amidst 
the  wild  uproar : 

"  My  father  !  hearken  not  unto  them  !  Let  them 
slay  me  if  they  be  valiant  enough,  but  chaffer  not 
with  thy  slaves  !" 

Mahmoud  looked  up  in  astonishment  at  this  well- 
known  voice,  and  saw  before  him  a  handsome  figure 
in  the  prince's  garments  and  with  a  proud  and  ma- 
jestic countenance ;  but  that  face,  though  familiar 
to  him  and  very  dear,  was  not  his  son's  face.  Ah, 
it  was  Milieva ! 

The  odalisk  perceived  that  Mahmoud's  features 
softened,  that  he  looked  tenderly  upon  her;  and  as 
if  she  feared  that  the  Sultan  might  yield  out  of  com- 
passion towards  her,  she  hastily  turned  her  flaming 
face  to  the  Janissaries  and  exclaimed  : 

"Ye  blood-thirsty  dogs  of  Samound  !  who  bay 
down  the  sun  from  the  heavens,  accomplish  your 
bloody  work  !  Forward,  ye  valiant  heroes,  with 
whose  backs  alone  the  enemy  is  familiar,  fall  upon 
me  in  twos  and  threes,  if  any  one  of  you  has  not 
the  courage  to  plunge  his  steel  single-handed  into 
the  heart  of  the  last  scion  of  Omar's  stock  !  My 
death  will  not  constrain  the  Sultan  to  bargain  with 
you.  Kill  me  while  you  have  power  over  me,  for 
if  ever  I  have  power  over  you  I  will  not  weep  be- 
fore you,  as  ye  have  seen  Mahmoud  and  Selim  weep  ; 
but  I  will  so  utterly  destroy  you  that  even  he  who 
wears  a  garment  like  unto  yours,  even  he  who 
shall  mention  your  name,  shall  pronounce  his  own 
doom." 

The  infuriated  rebels  raised  their  flashing  swords 


A    BALL   IN   THE    SERAGLIO  237 

above  the  head  of  the  presumptuous  child  at  these 
menacing  words  ;  another  moment  and  she  would 
have  lain  in  the  dust.  But  Mahmoud  arose,  spurned 
them  aside  from  the  prince,  as  they  supposed  him  to 
be,  and  taking  from  the  hands  of  Kara  Makan  the 
document  and  writing  materials,  signed  his  name 
beneath  it.  Milieva  seized  the  Sultan's  hand  to  pre- 
vent him  from  writing,  but  he  tenderly  kissed  her  on 
the  forehead  and  gently  whispered,  "  Rather  would 
I  lose  the  whole  world  than  thee,"  and  with  that  he 
placed  in  the  hands  of  the  Janissaries  the  subscribed 
death-warrants. 

After  obtaining  these  concessions,  the  rebels  grew 
calmer,  the  Sultan  proclaimed  amnesty  for  all  of- 
fenders, appointed  the  chief  brawlers  to  high  of- 
fices, and  distributed  money  amongst  them  from  the 
treasury. 

Peace  was  thus  restored.  The  Sultan  and  the  sham 
prince  returned  to  the  Seraglio,  accompanied  all  the 
way  by  a  vast  throng,  and  the  whole  square  by  the 
fountains  of  Ibrahim  was  filled  by  the  well-known 
turbans  of  the  Janissaries,  who,  in  the  joy  of  their 
insulting  triumph,  shouted  long  life  to  the  humili- 
ated Padishah. 

Mahmoud  surveyed  the  huzzaing  throng,  where, 
man  to  man,  they  stood  so  tightly  squeezed  togeth- 
er that  nothing  could  be  distinguished  but  a  sea  of 
heads.  And  the  Sultan  thought  to  himself,  "  What 
a  fine  thing  it  would  be  to  sweep  all  those  heads  away 
at  one  stroke !" 


CHAPTER  XIV 
KURSHID     PASHA 

GASKHO  BEY,  the  incapable  giant,  was  captured  by 
the  Suliotes  in  a  night  attack,  his  army  was  scattered 
beneath  the  walls  of  Janina,  and  AH  Pasha  became 
once  more  the  absolute  master  of  Epirus. 

Then,  like  lightning  fallen  from  heaven,  unex- 
pectedly, unforeseen,  a  man  came  from  Thessalo- 
nica  whose  name  was  shortly  to  ring  through  half 
the  world.  The  name  of  this  man  was  Kurshid 
Pasha. 

He  was  a  man  of  a  puny,  meagre  frame,  his  feat- 
ures were  widely  divergent  from  the  characteristic 
Ottoman  type,  for  he  had  a  delicate  profile,  a  bright 
blond  beard  and  mustache,  and  blue  eyes  with  flex- 
ible eyebrows,  all  of  which  gave  a  peculiar  character 
to  his  face,  which  showed  unmistakable  traces  of  a 
penetrating  mind  and  cool  courage. 

Ten  thousand  warriors  accompanied  the  new  com- 
mander to  Janina,  which  grew  into  thirty  thousand 
at  the  very  first  battle.  Kleon's  and  Ypsilanti's  ar- 
mies were  routed,  and  Gaskho  Bey's  scattered  squad- 
rons rallied  around  the  banners  of  the  victor. 

While  AH  Pasha  was  defending  Janina,  the  leaders 
of  the  Greek  insurgents  besieged  the  fortress  of  Arta, 
which  Salikh  Bey  defended  with  a  small  garrison. 

Kurshid's  predecessor,  Gaskho  Bey,  had  commit- 


KURSHID    PASHA  239 

ted  the  error  of  besieging  Janina  and  endeavoring 
to  relieve  Arta  at  the  same  time,  and  thus  he  came 
to  grief  at  both  places.  The  new  commander  acted 
on  a  different  plan.  He  knew  well  that  not  a  head 
amongst  all  the  Greek  rebels  was  half  so  dan- 
gerous as  AH  Tepelenti's  ;  so,  leaving  Salikh  Pasha 
to  his  fate,  he  directed  all  his  energies  against  Ja- 
nina. 

A  man  indeed  hath  come  against  thee,  O  Ali 
Pasha  !  A  man  as  valiant,  as  crafty  as  thou  ;  if 
thou  be  a  fox,  he  is  an  eagle  of  the  rocks,  that 
pounces  down  on  the  fox  ;  and  if  thou  be  a  tiger, 
he  is  the  boa-constrictor  which  infolds  and  crushes 
the  tiger. 

Ali  urged  Kleon  and  Artemis  to  hasten  to  his  as- 
sistance. His  messengers  did  not  return  to  the 
fortress.  The  Greek  leaders  gave  no  reply  to  his 
summons.  Anybody  else  would  have  found  some 
consolatory  explanation  of  their  remissness,  but  Ali 
divined  things  better.  The  Greeks  said  amongst 
themselves,  "  Let  the  old  monster  tremble  in  his 
ditch  ;  let  them  close  him  in  and  hold  him  tight. 
He  will  be  constrained  to  make  a  life -and -death 
struggle  to  save  his  old  beard.  When  we  have  cap- 
tured Arta,  and  when  our  detested  ally  "  (for  they 
did  detest  him  in  spite  of  his  being  their  good 
friend)  "is  at  the  very  last  gasp,  then  we  will  go 
to  the  rescue,  relieve  him,  and  let  him  live  a  little 
longer." 

Tepelenti  was  well  aware  that  they  spoke  of  him 
in  this  way.  He  knew  well  that  they  hated  him, 
and  would  gladly  leave  him  to  perish.  The  only  rea- 
son the  Greeks  had  for  allying  themselves  with  Ali 
was  that  his  fortress  was  filled  with  an  enormous 


240  THE   LION   OF  JANINA 

store  of  treasure,  arms,  and  muniments  of  war  ;  his 
gray  head  was  the  pivot  of  the  whole  rebellion. 

If  the  fortress  were  taken,  they  would  be  deprived 
of  this  strong  pivot,  those  treasures,  that  gray  head  ! 

One  day  the  Suliotes  encamped  before  Arta  heard 
the  terrible  tidings  that  Kurshid  Pasha  had  captured 
Lithanizza  and  La  Gulia,  the  two  outlying  forts  of 
the  stronghold  of  Janina,  and  had  driven  Ali  back 
into  the  fortress.  The  tidings  filled  them  with  con- 
sternation. If  Janina  were  lost,  the  whole  Greek 
insurrection  would  lose  the  source  of  its  supplies. 
The  treasures  which  Ali  had  scattered  amongst  the 
Greeks  with  a  prodigal  hand  would  at  once  fall  into 
the  hands  of  the  Sultan,  and  then  he  would  be  able 
to  secure  Epirus  at  a  single  blow. 

A  Greek  army  under  Marco  Bozzari  immediately 
set  out  from  Arta  to  relieve  Janina.  Ali  knew  of 
it  beforehand.  Bozzari's  spies  had  crept  through 
Kurshid's  camp  into  Janina,  and  signified  to  Ali 
that  their  leaders  were  on  their  way  to  "The  Five 
Wells,"  and  that  he  should  send  forth  an  army  to 
meet  them. 

"  There  is  no  necessity  for  it,"  replied  Ali,  with  a 
cold  smile.  "  I  am  quite  capable  of  defending  my- 
self in  Janina  for  three  months  against  any  force 
that  may  be  brought  against  me.  It  is  much  more 
necessary  to  capture  Arta.  Go  back,  therefore,  and 
say  to  Marco  Bozzari,  'Come  not  to  Janina,  but  go 
against  Salikh  Pasha.  Tepelenti  is  sufficient  for 
himself  in  Janina.' " 

Bozzari  understood  the  old  lion's  hint.  He  did 
not  wish  the  Greek  forces  to  get  into  Janina,  he 
preferred  to  defend  himself  to  the  very  last  bastion. 
All  the  forces  he  had  consisted  of  four  hundred  and 


KURSHID   PASHA  241 

thirty  Albanians,  but  this  number  was  quite  suf- 
ficient to  serve  the  guns.  Even  if  but  a  tenth  of 
this  force  remained  to  him,  that  would  be  amply 
sufficient  to  defend  the  red  tower,  and  if  the  worst 
came  to  the  worst,  AH  alone  would  be  sufficient  to 
blow  the  place  into  the  air. 

Here  AH  had  accumulated  all  his  treasures,  all 
his  arms,  his  garments,  his  correspondence  with  the 
princes  of  half  the  universe,  his  young  damsels.  In 
the  cellar  below  the  tower  were  piled  up  a  thousand 
barrels  of  gunpowder,  a  long  match  reached  from 
one  of  these  barrels  to  Ali's  chamber,  and  there  a 
couple  of  torches  were  always  burning  by  his  side. 

Whoever  wanted  Ali's  head  had  better  come  for 
it! 

So  Bozzari  returned  to  Arta,  and  not  very  long 
afterward  the  Greek  army  took  the  place  by  storm. 
In  the  whole  fortress  they  did  not  find  powder 
enough  to  fill  a  hole  in  the  barrel ;  the  Turkish 
army  had,  in  fact,  fired  away  its  very  last  cartridge. 

AH  had  once  more  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  one 
of  his  enemies,  Salikh  Pasha,  prostrate.  Hitherto 
all  who  had  fought  against  him  had  been  his  furious 
haters,  personal  enemies,  enviers  of  his  fortune ; 
and,  bitter  hater  as  he  was,  it  was  with  a  strong 
feeling  of  satisfaction  that  Tepelenti  saw  them  all 
bite  the  dust  ;  but  this  Kurshid  was  quite  indif- 
ferent to  him,  and  knew  nothing  either  of  his  fury 
or  his  intrigues.  He  had  never  been  Ali's  enemy, 
and  had  no  reason  for  hating  him.  This  thought 
made  AH  uneasy. 

It  had  often  been  Ali's  experience  that  when  any 
one  who  greatly  hated  him  came  during  a  siege  or 
a  battle  within  shooting  distance  of  him,  and  he 
16 


2/|  2  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

then  pointed  a  gun  at  him,  the  ball  so  fired  seemed 
to  fly  on  the  wings  of  his  own  savage  fury,  and 
would  hit  its  man  even  at  a  thousand  paces  ;  but 
Kurshid  often  took  a  walk  near  the  trenches,  and 
though  they  fired  at  him  one  gun  after  another,  not 
a  bullet  went  near  him. 

"  Let  him  alone,"  said  AH  ;  "  we  shall  never  be 
able  to  kill  this  man."  And  his  old  energy  left  him 
as  if  he  had  suddenly  become  crippled. 

He  invited  Kurshid  Pasha  to  intercede  for  him 
with  the  Sultan,  that  he  might  be  restored  to  favor, 
offering  in  such  case  to  place  his  treasures  at  the 
disposal  of  the  Grand  Signior,  and  turn  his  arms 
against  the  Greeks.  Kurshid  demanded  an  assur- 
ance to  this  effect  in  writing,  and  when  AH  com- 
plied, Kurshid  sent  the  document,  not  to  the  Sultan 
at  Stambul  but  to  the  Suliotes  at  Arta,  that  they 
might  see  how  ready  AH  was  to  betray  them.  The 
Greeks,  in  disgust,  abandoned  AH.  This  last  treach- 
ery dismayed  them  at  the  very  zenith  of  their  tri- 
umph ;  they  perceived  that  a  mighty  antagonist 
had  risen  against  them  in  Kurshid  Pasha,  who  was 
magnanimous  enough  not  to  make  use  of  traitors, 
but  spurn  them  with  contempt.  This  intellectual 
superiority  guaranteed  the  success  of  Kurshid's 
arms.  The  Turkish  commander  had  been  acute 
enough  to  extend  the  hand  of  reconciliation,  not  to 
AH,  but  to  the  Suliotes. 

Tepelenti  waited  in  vain  in  the  tower  of  Janina 
for  the  arrival  of  the  army  of  deliverance.  The 
Suliotes  returned  to  their  villages,  and  Artemis 
reflected  with  secret  joy  that  in  the  very  red  tower 
in  which  AH  had  decapitated  her  plighted  lover,  he 
himself  now  sat  in  his  despair,  environed  by  foes, 


KURSHID    PASHA  243 

waiting  with  the  foolish  hope  that  the  embittered 
Suliotes  would  hasten  to  deliver  him. 

The  Epirote  rebellion  was  already  subdued  by 
Kurshid  Pasha,  and  only  one  point  in  the  whole  em- 
pire now  glowed  with  a  dangerous  fire — the  haughty 
Janina. 


CHAPTER   XV 

CARETTO 

ALI  had  now  only  about  room  enough  to  cover 
his  head.  His  enemies  had  twenty  times  as  much, 
and  they  besieged  him  night  and  day.  The  fortress 
on  the  hill  of  Lithanizza  and  the  Isle  of  La  Gulia 
were  in  Kurshid's  power  already. 

Still  the  old  warrior  did  not  surrender.  The 
bombs  thrown  into  the  fortress  levelled  his  palaces 
with  the  ground.  His  marble  halls  were  reduced 
to  rubbish  heaps,  his  kiosks  were  smoking  ruins, 
and  his  splendid  gardens  lay  buried,  obliterated. 
Yet,  for  all  that,  Ali  Pasha  vomited  back  his  wrath 
upon  the  besiegers  out  of  eighty  guns,  and  it  hap- 
pened more  than  once  that  hidden  mines  exploded 
beneath  the  more  forward  advanced  of  the  enemy's 
batteries,  blowing  guns  and  gunners  into  the  air. 

The  defence  was  conducted  by  an  Italian  engi- 
neer whom  Ali  had  enticed  into  his  service  in  his 
luckier  days  with  the  promise  of  enormous  treasures 
and  detained  ever  since.  This  Italian's  name  was 
Caretto.  It  was  his  science  that  had  made  Janina 
so  strong.  The  clumsy  valor  of  the  Turkish  gun- 
ners fell  to  dust  before  the  strategy  of  the  Italian 
engineer.  Of  late  Caretto  was  much  exercised  by 
the  thought  that  he  might  be  discharged  without  a 
farthing,  but  discharge  was  now  out  of  the  ques- 


CARETTO  245 

tion.  If  Caretto  were  outside  the  gates  of  Janina, 
then  the  fate  of  Janina  would  be  in  his  hands,  for 
every  bastion,  every  subterranean  mine,  every  cor- 
ner of  the  fortress  was  known  to  him. 

Now  at  home  in  Palermo  was  Caretto's  betrothed, 
who,  as  the  daughter  of  a  wealthy  family,  could 
only  be  his  if  he  also  had  the  command  of  riches  ; 
and  that  was  the  chief  reason  why  the  youth  had 
accepted  the  offer  of  the  tyrant  of  Epirus.  And 
now  tidings  reached  him  from  Sicily  that  the  par- 
ents of  his  bride  were  dead,  and  that  she  was  await- 
ing him  with  open  arms  ;  let  him  only  come  to  her, 
poor  fellow,  even  if  he  brought  nothing  with  him 
but  the  beggar's  staff.  And  go  he  could  not,  for 
AH  Pasha  held  him  fast.  He  had  to  point  the  guns, 
and  send  forth  hissing  bullets  amongst  the  besieg- 
ers, and  defend  the  fortress  to  the  last,  while  his 
beloved  bride  awaited  him  at  home. 

One  day,  as  Caretto  was  directing  the  guns,  a 
grenade  fired  from  the  heights  of  Lithanizza  burst 
over  his  head  and  struck  out  his  left  eye.  Caretto 
asked  himself  bitterly  whether  his  bride  would  be 
able  to  love  him  with  a  face  so  disfigured.  Hence- 
forth he  went  about  constantly  with  a  black  band- 
age about  his  wounded  face,  and  the  besiegers 
called  him  "  the  one-eyed  Giaour." 

One  fine  morning  in  February  Kurshid  Pasha 
again  directed  a  fierce  fire  against  the  fortress. 
The  siege  guns  had  now  arrived  which  the  army 
had  used  against  Cassandra,  and  after  a  three  hours' 
cannonade,  the  destructive  effect  of  the  new  battery 
was  patent,  for  the  tower  of  the  northern  bastion 
lay  in  ruins.  Ali  Pasha  galloped  furiously  up  and 
down  the  bastions,  stimulating  and  threatening  the 


246  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

gunners  with  a  drawn  sword  in  his  hand.  Who- 
ever quitted  his  place  instantly  fell  a  victim  be- 
neath All's  own  hand.  Caretto  was  standing  non- 
chalantly beside  a  gabion,  whence  he  directed  the 
fire  of  the  most  powerful  of  all  the  batteries,  each 
gun  of  which  was  a  thirty-six  pounder.  The  guns 
of  this  battery  discharged  thirty  balls  each  every 
hour. 

All  at  once  the  battery  stopped  firing. 

Transported  with  rage,  Ali  Pasha  at  once  came 
galloping  up  to  Caretto. 

"Why  don't  you  go  on  firing?"  he  cried. 

"  Because  it  is  impossible,"  replied  the  engineer, 
coolly  folding  his  arms. 

"Why  is  it  impossible,"  thundered  the  pasha,  his 
whole  body  convulsed  with  rage,  which  the  coolness 
of  the  Italian  raised  to  fever  heat. 

"  Because  the  guns  are  red  -  hot  from  incessant 
firing." 

"  Then  throw  water  upon  them  !"  cried  Ali,  and 
with  that  he  dismounted  from  his  horse. 

Caretto,  for  the  life  of  him,  could  not  help  laugh- 
ing at  this  senseless  command.  Whereupon  Tepe- 
lenti  suddenly  leaped  upon  him  and  struck  him  in 
the  face,  so  that  his  cap  flew  far  away,  right  off  the 
bastion.  He  had  struck  Caretto  on  the  very  spot 
where  Kurshid  Pasha's  grenade  had  lacerated  his 
face  a  few  weeks  before. 

The  Italian  readjusted  over  his  eye  the  bandage, 
which  had  been  knocked  all  awry  by  the  blow,  and 
observed,  with  a  cold  affectation  of  mirth: 

"  You  did  well,  sir,  to  strike  my  face  on  the  spot 
where  one  eye  had  been  knocked  out  already,  for 
if  you  had  struck  me  on  the  other  side  you  might 


CARETTO  247 

have  knocked  out  the  other  eye  also,  and  then-  how 
could  I  have  pointed  your  guns  ?" 

Ali,  however,  pretended  to  take  no  notice,  but 
directed  that  the  guns  should  be  douched  with  cold 
water  and  then  reloaded  ;  he  himself  fired  the  first. 
The  cannon  the  same  instant  burst  in  two  and 
smashed  the  leg  of  a  cannonier  standing  close  to  it. 

"  It  does  not  matter,"  cried  Ali ;  "  load  the  others, 
too." 

When  the  second  cannon  also  burst  he  dashed 
the  match  to  the  ground,  threw  himself  on  his 
horse,  and  galloped  off,  quivering  in  every  nerve 
as  if  shaken  by  an  ague. 

The  Italian,  however,  with  the  utmost  sang-froid, 
ordered  that  the  exploded  cannons  should  be  re- 
moved and  fresh  ones  fetched  from  the  arsenal  and 
put  in  their  places,  and  set  them  in  position  amidst 
a  shower  of  bullets  from  the  besiegers.  When  the 
battery  was  ready  the  enemy  withdrew  their  siege 
guns,  and  till  the  next  day  not  another  shot  was 
fired  against  Janina. 

Tepelenti  was  well  aware  that  he  had  mortally 
offended  Caretto,  and  he  had  learned  to  know  men 
(especially  Italians)  only  too  well  to  imagine  for  an 
instant  that  Caretto,  for  all  his  jocoseness  on  the 
occasion,  would  ever  forget  that  cowardly  and  un- 
grateful blow.  For,  indeed,  it  was  an  act  of  the 
vilest  ingratitude.  What !  to  strike  the  wound 
which  the  man  had  received  on  his  account !  To 
strike  a  European  officer  in  the  face  !  Ali  was 
well  aware  that  such  a  thing  could  never  be  par- 
doned. 

The  same  night  he  sent  for  two  gunners  and 
ordered  them  not  to  lose  sight  of  Caretto  for  an 


248  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

instant,  and  if  he  attempted  to  escape  to  shoot  him 
down  there  and  then. 

Next  day  Caretto  was  unusually  good-humored. 
Early  in  the  morning  he  went  out  upon  the  ram- 
parts, which  were  then  covered  with  freshly  fallen 
snow.  The  winter  seemed  to  be  pouring  forth  its 
last  venom,  and  the  large  flakes  fell  so  thickly  that 
one  could  not  see  twenty  paces  in  advance. 

"  This  is  just  the  weather  for  an  assault,"  said 
Caretto  in  a  loud  voice  to  the  Turks  standing 
around  him  ;  "  in  such  wild  weather  one  cannot  see 
the  enemy  till  he  stands  beneath  the  very  ramparts. 
I  will  be  so  bold  as  to  maintain  that  Kurshid's  bands 
are  likely  to  steal  upon  us  under  cover  of  this  thick 
snow-storm.  I  should  like  to  fire  a  random  shot 
from  the  ramparts  to  let  them  know  we  are  awake." 

Many  thought  his  anxiety  just.  Ali  Pasha  was 
also  there,  and  he  said  nothing  either  for  or  against 
the  proposal. 

Caretto  hoisted  a  cannon  to  the  level  of  the  ram- 
parts of  Lithanizza  and  fastened  a  long  chain  to 
the  gun  whereby  his  group  of  Albanians  could  raise 
and  lower  it. 

"  Leave  the  chain  upon  it,"  said  Caretto,  "  for  we 
may  have  to  turn  it  in  another  direction." 

Nevertheless  it  was  in  a  good  position  already. 
Caretto  calculated  his  distances  with  his  astrolabe, 
then  pointed  the  gun  and  ordered  it  to  be  loaded. 

The  two  gunners  whom  Ali  had  set  to  watch  him 
never  took  their  eyes  off  the  Italian  ;  both  of  them 
had  loaded  pistols  in  their  hands.  Caretto  did  not 
seem  to  observe  that  they  were  watching  him  ;  he 
might  have  thought  that  they  were  there  to  help  him. 

The  gun  had  to  be  turned  now  to  the  right  and 


CARETTO  249 

now  to  the  left.  Caretto  himself  took  aim,  but  the 
clumsy  Albanians  kept  on  pushing  the  heavy  laf- 
fette  either  a  little  too  much  on  this  side  or  a  little 
too  much  on  that,  till  at  last  he  cried  to  the  two 
watchers  behind  him  : 

"  Just  lend  a  hand  and  help  these  blockheads  !" 
They  stooped  mechanically  to  raise  the  laffette. 
"  Enough  !"  cried  the  Italian,  and  with  that  he  put 
his  hand  on  the  touch-hole.  "  Now  fire  !"  he  cried 
to  the  artilleryman,  at  the  same  time  removing  his 
hand. 

The  match  descended,  there  was  a  thunderous 
report,  and  the  same  instant  Caretto  seized  the 
chain  wound  round  the  wheel  of  the  cannon,  and, 
lowering  himself  from  the  ramparts,  glided  down 
the  chain. 

The  watchers,  with  the  double  velocity  of  rage 
and  fear,  rushed  to  the  breastwork  of  the  ramparts. 
Caretto  had  got  to  the  end  of  the  chain  and  was 
grasping  it  with  both  hands  ;  below  him  yawned  a 
depth  of  thirty  feet.  The  chain  was  not  long 
enough,  and  there  he  was  suspended  between  two 
deaths. 

"  Come  back,"  cried  the  watchers,  aiming  their 
pistols  at  his  head,  "  or  we  will  shoot  you  through 
and  through  !" 

Caretto  cast  a  wild  glance  upward,  the  bandage 
fell  from  his  bloody  eye,  and  he  looked  at  them 
with  the  dying  fury  of  a  desperately  wounded  wild 
beast.  Then  suddenly  he  kicked  himself  clear  of 
the  wall  by  a  sharp  movement  of  his  foot,  and  de- 
scribing the  arc  of  a  circle,  he  plunged  into  the 
depth  beneath  him  like  a  rebounding  bullet.  The 
Albanians  fired  after  him,  but  neither  of  them  hit 


250  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

him.  Below,  at  the  foot  of  the  bastion,  the  daring 
Italian  lay  motionless  for  a  moment,  but  then  he 
quickly  rose  to  his  feet  and  began  to  clamber  up  the 
other  side  of  the  ditch.  He  could  only  make  use  of 
one  arm,  for  the  other  had  been  dislocated  in  his 
fall.  Straining  all  his  might,  he  struggled  up  ;  a 
whole  shower  of  bullets  pursued  him  and  whistled 
about  his  head,  but  not  one  of  them  hit  him,  for 
the  heavy  snowfall  made  it  difficult  to  take  aim.  At 
last  he  reached  the  top  of  the  opposite  side  of  the 
trench,  and  then  he  turned  round  and  shook  his  fist 
at  the  devastating  fortress,  and  disappeared  in  a 
heavy  snow-drift.  The  gunners  kept  on  firing  after 
him  at  random  for  some  time. 

AH  Pasha  turned  pale  and  almost  fell  from  his 
horse  when  the  tidings  reached  him  that  Caretto 
had  escaped. 

"  It  is  all  over  now  !"  cried  he  in  despair,  broke 
his  sword  in  two,  and  shut  himself  up  in  the  red 
tower.  In  the  outer  court-yard  they  saw  him  no 
more. 

AH  knew  for  certain  that  with  the  departure  of 
Caretto  the  last  remains  of  his  power  had  vanished  ; 
his  stronghold  and  its  resources  were  hopelessly 
ruined  if  any  one  revealed  their  secrets  to  his 
enemies  outside.  Caretto  knew  everything,  and 
"the  one-eyed  Giaour"  was  received  with  great 
triumph  in  the  camp  of  Kurshid  Pasha.  The  next 
day  AH  Pasha  had  bitter  experience  of  the  fact  that 
the  hand  which  had  hitherto  defended  him  was 
now  turned  against  him.  Within  nine  hours  a  bat- 
tery, constructed  by  Caretto,  had  made  a  breach 
thirty  fathoms  wide  in  the  outworks  of  Janina  ;  the 
other  cannons  of  the  besiegers  were  set  up  in  places 


CARETTO  251 

whither  All's  mines  did  not  extend,  and  when  he 
made  new  ones  they  were  immediately  rendered  in- 
operative by  countermining,  and  at  last  Caretto 
discovered  the  net-work  of  hidden  tunnels  at  the 
head  of  the  bridge,  although  they  had  been  carefully 
buried,  and  after  a  savage  struggle  forced  his  way 
through  them  into  the  fortress.  The  Albanians 
fought  desperately,  but  Ali's  enemies,  who  could 
afford  to  shed  their  blood  freely,  forced  their  way 
through  and  planted  their  scaling-ladders  against 
the  side  of  the  fortress  opposite  the  island,  and 
where  the  debris  of  the  battered-down  wall  filled  up 
the  ditch  they  crossed  over  and  occupied  the  breach. 
In  the  evening,  after  a  fierce  combat  in  the  court- 
yard, Tepelenti's  forces  were  cut  to  pieces  one  by 
one,  and  he  himself,  with  seventy  survivors,  took 
refuge  in  the  red  tower. 

So  only  the  red  tower  now  remained  to  him. 


CHAPTER   XVI 

EMINAH 

THE  vanquished  lion  was  shut  up  within  a  space 
six  yards  square  ;  a  narrow  tower  into  all  four  win- 
dows of  which  his  enemies  were  peeping  was  now 
his  sole  possession  !  There  he  sits  in  that  octago- 
nal chamber,  in  which  he  had  passed  so  many  mem- 
orable moments.  Perhaps  now,  as  he  leaned  his 
heavy  head  upon  his  hand,  the  remembrance  of 
those  moments  passed  before  his  mind's  eye  like  a 
procession  of  melancholy  shadows.  Around  him 
lay  his  treasures  in  shining  piles  ;  heaps  of  gold  and 
silver,  massive  gold  plate,  the  spoils  of  sanctuaries, 
sparkling  gems,  lay  scattered  about  the  floor  hig- 
gledy-piggledy, like  so  much  sand  or  gravel. 

Of  all  his  kinsfolk,  of  all  his  warriors,  not  one 
was  present  with  him  ;  all  had  fallen  on  the  battle- 
field, fighting  either  with  him  or  against  him.  Of 
the  seventy  warriors  who  had  taken  refuge  with 
him  in  the  tower,  sixty -four  had  deserted  him. 
Kurshid  had  promised  a  pardon  to  the  renegades, 
and  only  six  remained  with  Ali.  Why  did  these 
six  remain?  Ali  had  not  told  them  not  to  leave 
him. 

These  faithful  ones  were  keeping  guard  in  his 
antechamber,  and  for  some  little  time  they  had  been 
whispering  together. 


EMINAH  253 

At  last  they  went  in  to  AH. 

Tepelenti  looked  them  every  one  through  and 
through.  He  could  read  what  they  wanted  in  their 
confused  looks  and  their  unsteady  eyes.  He  did 
not  wait  for  them  to  speak,  but  said,  with  a  wave  of 
his  hand  : 

"  Go  !  leave  me  ;  you  are  the  last.  Go  where  the 
others  have  gone;  save  yourselves.  Life  is  sweet; 
live  long  and  happily.  I  will  remain  here.  Tepe- 
lenti can  die  alone." 

Sighing  deeply,  the  soldiers  turned  away.  They 
durst  not  raise  their  eyes  to  the  face  of  the  gray- 
haired  veteran.  Noiselessly,  without  a  word,  on  the 
tips  of  their  toes,  five  of  them  withdrew.  But  the 
sixth  remained  there  still,  and,  after  casting  about 
for  a  word  for  some  time,  said,  at  last,  to  AH  : 

"  Oh,  sir,  cast  the  fulness  of  pride  from  thy  heart, 
suffer  not  thy  name  to  perish  !  The  Sultan  is 
merciful ;  bow  thy  head  before  him  and  he  will  still 
be  gracious  to  thee  !" 

The  soldier  had  scarce  uttered  the  last  word  of 
this  recommendation  when  AH  softly  drew  a  pistol 
from  his  girdle  and  shot  him  through  the  head,  so 
that  he  spun  round  and  fell  backward  across  the 
threshold.  This  was  all  the  reward  he  got  for  ad- 
vising AH  to  ask  for  mercy. 

And  now  Ali  is  alone.  His  doors,  his  gates  stand 
wide  open  ;  anybody  who  so  pleases  can  go  in  and 
out.  Why,  then,  does  nobody  come  to  seize  the  sol- 
itary veteran  ?  why  do  they  fear  to  cross  the  thresh- 
old of  the  vanquished  foe  ? 

But  hearken  !  fresh  footsteps  are  resounding  on 
the  staircase,  and  through  the  open  door,  guarded 
by  the  corpse  of  the  last  soldier  whom  Ali  slew,  a 


254  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

strange  man  entered,  dressed  in  an  unusual,  new- 
fangled uniform  ;  he  was  Kurshid  Pasha's  silihdar. 

Tepelenti  allowed  him  to  approach  within  five 
paces  of  where  he  sat,  and  then  beckoned  him  to 
stop. 

"  Speak  ;  what  dost  thou  want  ?" 

"Ali  Tepelenti,"  said  the  silihdar,  "surrender. 
Thou  hast  nothing  left  in  the  world  and  nobody  to 
aid  thee.  My  master,  the  seraskier,  Kurshid  Pasha, 
hath  sent  me  to  thee  that  I  might  receive  thy  sword 
and  escort  thee  to  his  camp." 

Tepelenti,  with  the  utmost  sang-froid,  drew  forth 
from  the  folds  of  his  caftan  a  magnificent  gold 
watch  in  an  enamelled  case  set  with  diamonds. 

"  Hearken  !"  said  he,  in  a  low,  soft  voice.  "  It  is 
now  twenty  minutes  past  ten  ;  take  this  watch  and 
keep  it  as  a  souvenir  of  me.  Greet  Kurshid  Pasha 
from  me,  and  point  out  to  him  that  it  was  twenty 
minutes  past  ten  when  you  spoke  with  me,  and  let 
him  take  notice  that  if  after  twenty  minutes  past 
eleven  I  can  see  from  the  windows  of  this  tower  a 
single  hostile  soldier  in  the  court-yard  of  the  fortress, 
then — I  swear  it  by  the  mercies  of  Allah! — I  will 
blow  the  fortress  into  the  air,  with  every  living  soul 
within  it.  Inform  Kurshid  Pasha  of  this  when  you 
give  him  my  salutation." 

The  silihdar  hastened  off,  and  at  a  quarter  to 
eleven  not  a  soul  was  to  be  seen  in  the  court-yard 
of  the  fortress  of  Janina.  Alive  in  his  citadel  sits 
AH  Tepelenti,  the  tyrant  of  Epirus,  mighty  even  in 
his  fall,  who  has  nothing  and  nobody  left,  save  only 
his  indomitable  heart. 

Night  descended  upon  the  fortress  of  Janina,  but 
sleep  did  not  descend  upon  the  eyes  of  All. 


EMINAH  255 

He  sat  in  that  red  tower  where  he  had  perpe- 
trated his  crimes,  in  that  chamber  where  his  vic- 
tims had  breathed  forth  the  last  sighs  of  their  tort- 
ured lives,  and  all  round  about  glittering  treasures 
looked  upon  Ali  as  if  with  eyes  of  fire — all  of  it  the 
price  of  robbery,  fraud,  treason.  What  if  these 
things  could  speak  ? 

Everything  was  silent,  night  lay  black  before  the 
eyes  of  men,  only  Ali  saw  shadows  moving  about 
therein,  phantoms  with  pale,  phantoms  with  bloody 
faces,  who  rose  from  the  tomb  to  visit  their  perse- 
cutor and  announce  to  him  the  hour  of  his  death. 

Ali  trembled  not  before  them  ;  he  had  seen  them 
at  other  times  also.  He  had  slept  face  to  face  with 
the  severed  head  that  spoke  to  him,  he  had  listened 
to  the  enigmatical  words  of  the  dzhin  of  Seleucia, 
and  he  called  them  to  mind  again  now.  Calmly 
he  look«d  back  upon  the  current  of  his  past  life, 
from  which  so  many  horrible  shapes  arose  and 
glared  at  him  with  cold,  stony  eyes.  He  recked 
them  not,  Allah  had  so  ordered  it.  The  hare  nib- 
bles the  root,  the  vulture  devours  the  hare,  the 
hunter  shoots  the  vulture,  the  lion  fells  the  hunter, 
and  the  worm  eats  the  lion.  What,  after  all,  is  Ali  ? 
Naught  but  a  greater  worm  than  the  rest.  He  has 
devoured  much,  and  now  a  stronger  than  he  de- 
vours him,  and  a  still  greater  worm  will  devour  this 
stronger  one  also. 

Everything  was  fulfilled  which  had  been  proph- 
esied concerning  him.  His  own  sons,  his  own  wife, 
his  own  arms  had  fought  against  him.  If  only  his 
wife  had  not  done  this  he  could  have  borne  the 
rest. 

"  One,  two,"  the  decapitated  head  had  said,  and 


256  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

the  last  moments  of  the  two  years  were  just  passing 
away.  "  The  hand  which  wipes  out  the  deeds  of  the 
mighty  shall  at  last  blot  out  thy  deeds  also,  and  thou 
shalt  be  not  a  hero  whom  the  world  admires,  but  a 
slave  whom  it  curses.  Those  whom  thou  didst  love 
will  bless  the  hour  of  thy  death,  and  thy  enemies 
will  weep,  and  God  will  order  it  so  to  avert  the  ruin 
of  thy  nation." 

So  it  is,  so  it  has  chanced  ;  the  hazard  of  the  die 
has  gone  against  him,  and  he  has  nothing  left. 

If  only  his  wife  had  not  betrayed  him  ! 

At  other  times  also  Ali  had  seen  these  phantoms 
of  the  night  arise.  He  had  seen  them  rise  from  the 
tomb  pale  and  bloody  ;  but  in  his  heart  there  had 
always  been  a  sweet  refuge,  the  charming  young 
damsel  whose  childlike  face  and  angelic  eyes  had 
robbed  the  evil  sorcery  of  all  its  power.  When 
Tepelenti  covered  his  gray  head  with  her  long, 
thick,  flowing  locks,  he  reposed  behind  them  as  in 
the  shade  of  Paradise,  whither  those  heart-torment- 
ing memories  could  not  pursue  him.  Why  should 
he  have  lost  her?  She  was  the  first  of  all,  and  the 
dearest ;  but  Fate  at  the  last  would  not  even  leave 
him  her. 

Even  now  his  thoughts  went  back  to  her.  The 
pale  light  of  that  face:  that  memory,  lightened  his 
solitary,  darkened  soul,  which  was  as  desolate  as  the 
night  outside. 

But  lo  !  it  is  as  if  the  night  grew  brighter  ;  a  sort 
of  errant  light  glides  along  the  walls  and  a  gleam 
of  sunshine  breaks  unexpectedly  through  the  open 
door  of  the  room. 

The  pasha  looked  in  that  direction  with  amaze- 
ment. Who  could  his  visitor  be  at  that  hour  ?  Who 


EMINAH  257 

is  coming  to  drive  the  phantoms  of  darkness  from 
his  room  and  from  his  heart  ? 

A  pale  female  form,  with  a  smile  upon  her  face 
and  tears  in  her  eyes,  appears  before  him.  She 
comes  right  up  to  the  spot  where  Tepelenti  is  sit- 
ting on  the  ground.  She  places  her  torch  in  an 
iron  sconce  in  the  wall  and  stands  there  before  the 
pasha. 

AH  looked  at  her  sadly.  He  fancied  that  this  also 
was  only  a  dream  shape,  only  one  of  those  appari- 
tions created  by  a  fevered  mind,  like  those  which 
walked  beside  him  headless  and  bloody.  It  was 
Eminah;  at  whose  word  the  devastating  tempest 
had  been  unchained  against  the  mightiest  of  des- 
pots. 

Tepelenti  believed  neither  his  eyes  nor  his  heart 
when  he  saw  her  thus  before  him.  The  damsel 
took  the  old  man  by  the  hand  and  called  him  by 
his  name,  and  even  now  the  pasha  believed  that 
the  warmth  of  that  hand  and  the  sweetness  of  that 
voice  were  only  part  of  a  dream. 

"Wherefore  hast  thou  come?"  he  inquired  in  a 
whisper,  or  perchance  he  did  .npt  ask  but  only 
dreamed  that  he  asked. 

Yet  the  gracious,  childlike  damsel  was  sitting 
there  at  his  feet  as  at  other  times,  and  she  had  pil- 
lowed his  gray  head  upon  her  breast  and  covered 
his  face  with  the  tent  of  her  long  tresses,  as  she 
had  done  long,  long  ago  in  the  happy  times  that 
were  gone. 

Oh,  how  sweet  it  would  be  to  still  live  ! 

"  Oh,  Ali  Tepelenti,  let  go  the  hand  of  Death  from 
thy  hand  and  grasp  my  hand  instead  !  See  how 
warm  it  is  !  Oh,  Ali  Tepelenti,  rise  up  from  among 
17 


258  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

these  barrels  of  gunpowder,  and  rather  lay  thy  head 
upon  my  breast ;  hearken  how  it  beats  !  Oh,  AH 
Tepelenti,  ask  mercy  from  the  Sultan !  See,  now, 
how  lovely  life  is  !" 

Only  at  these  words  did  Ali  recover  himself. 
His  enemies  had  sought  out  this  woman,  the  only 
being  that  he  loved,  and  sent  her  to  him  to  soothe 
away  the  rage  of  his  soul  and  soften  his  heart  with 
her  caresses.  Oh,  how  well  they  understood  his 
heart ! 

"  Kurshid  Pasha  swore  to  me  that  he  would  ob- 
tain the  Sultan's  favor  for  thee,"  said  Eminah,  in 
a  tone  of  conviction.  "  He  wrote  a  letter  under 
his  seal  that  thou  shouldst  never  die  beneath  the 
hands  of  the  executioner ;  that  thy  death  should 
not  be  a  violent  one,  unless  it  were  in  an  honorable 
duel  or  on  the  field  of  battle.  Behold,  here  is  the 
letter  !" 

If  at  that  moment  Ali  had  listened  to  his  heart, 
he  must  have  extended  the  hand  of  submission  with- 
out any  letter  of  amnesty,  but,  like  an  escutcheon 
above  a  crown,  pride  was  perched  higher  than  his 
heart  and  spurned  the  offer. 

"  Allah  may  humble  Ali,  but  Ali  will  never  hum- 
ble himself." 

"  Then  thou  wilt  not  live  with  me  ?"  asked  Emi- 
nah, fixing  her  piteously  entreating  eyes  upon  her 
husband. 

Ali  shook  his  head  in  silence. 

"Then  I  will  die  with  thee!"  cried  the  damsel, 
with  a  determined  voice. 

The  pasha  regarded  her  in  amazement. 

"  I  swear,"  cried  Eminah,  "  that  I  will  either  go 
back  with  thee  or  die  with  thee  here  !  Dost  thou 


EMINAH  259 

hear  that  noise  ?  They  are  slamming  to  the  iron 
gates  from  the  outside.  At  this  moment  every  exit 
is  closed,  so  that  even  if  I  wished  to  escape  from 
hence  I  could  not.  These  doors  can  only  open  at  a 
word  from  Ali,  and  they  will  only  open  once  more. 
Either  thou  wilt  go  with  me  from  hence  or  I  will 
remain  here  with  thee." 

Ali  pressed  the  damsel  to  his  bosom.  She  lay 
clinging  there  like  a  tender  blossom.  He  pressed 
his  lips  to  that  pale  brow,  and  covering  her  gently 
and  gradually  with  his  silken  caftan,  he  whispered 
in  a  scarcely  audible  voice  : 

"  Be  it  so  !  be  it  so  !     Here  we  will  die  together  !" 

Early  next  morning  a  flourish  of  trumpets  awoke 
the  Lord  of  Janina,  the  Lord  of  the  last  tower  of 
Janina.  The  herald  of  Kurshid  Pasha  was  standing 
beneath  the  round  windows,  and  delivered  in  a  loud 
voice  the  general's  message  to  Ali  Pasha,  whereby 
he  summoned  Tepelenti  to  surrender  voluntarily  on 
the  strength  of  the  solemn  assurance  confirmed  by 
oath  to  his  wife. 

Tepelenti  appeared  at  the  window  with  Eminah 
reclining  on  his  bosom. 

"  Go  back  to  your  master,"  he  cried  to  the  mes- 
senger, "and  tell  him  that  Ali  and  his  wife  have 
resolved  to  die  here  together.  The  moment  an 
armed  host  enters  the  court-yard  of  this  fortress  I 
will  immediately  blow  up  the  tower." 

In  half  an  hour  the  messenger  returned  and  again 
summoned  Ali  to  the  window. 

"  Kurshid  Pasha  sends  thee  this  message,"  cried 
he.  "  If  thou  dost  surrender,  it  is  well,  and  if  thou 
dost  not  surrender,  it  is  well  also.  Thou  hast  still 
half  an  hour  wherein  thou  mayest  choose  betwixt 


260  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

life  and  death.  After  that  thou  mayest,  if  thou 
wilt,  throw  thy  torch  into  thy  powder  barrels  and 
blow  the  fortress  into  the  air.  As  to  thyself, 
Kurshid  Pasha  troubles  himself  but  little.  As  to 
thy  treasures  they  will  not  remain  in  the  air,  and 
when  they  come  to  the  ground  it  will  be  easy  to 
pick  them  up.  If,  however,  thou  dost  delay  thy 
resolution  beyond  the  half -hour,  then  Kurshid 
Pasha  himself  will  help  thee  in  the  matter,  and 
will  blow  up  thy  tower  for  thee,  to  save  thee  the 
trouble  of  blowing  it  up  thyself.  Do  as  thou  wilt, 
then,  and  hoist  either  the  white  or  the  red  flag 
as  seemeth  best  to  thee,  for  in  half  an  hour  the 
fortress  of  Janina  shall  see  thee  no  more." 

Ali  listened  solemnly  to  this  ultimatum,  and  let 
the  messenger  depart  without  an  answer. 

Eminah  lay  down  on  a  sofa  in  a  corner,  all  trem- 
bling. Ali  paced  the  vast  chamber  to  and  fro  with 
long  strides ;  but  his  strides  became  more  and 
more  uncertain.  If  only  this  woman  were  not 
here  !  If  only  he  might  be  spared  seeing  her  before 
him  ;  might  be  spared  half  an  hour's  deliberation 
as  to  what  he  was  to  do  !  Nevertheless  minute 
after  minute  sped  away,  and  still  Tepelenti  could 
not  make  up  his  mind.  Twice  his  hand  seized  the 
burning  torch  ;  he  had  but  to  bend  over  the  near- 
est barrel  of  powder  and  all  would  be  over ;  but 
on  each  occasion  his  eye  fell  upon  the  trembling 
woman  who  lay  there  looking  at  him  without  a 
word,  and  the  death-bearing  match  fell  from  his 
hand.  No,  no  ;  he  was  incapable  of  doing  the  terri- 
ble deed.  And  now  the  hour  struck  ;  the  time  had 
passed.  Ali  felt  a  pressure  about  his  heart.  Would 
Kurshid  accomplish  his  dreadful  threat  ? 


EMINAH  261 

At  that  instant  a  report  sounded  outside  the 
fortress,  and  half  a  moment  later  a  red  -  hot  steel 
bullet  burst  through  the  metal  roof  and  the  massive 
vault  of  the  tower  with  a  violent  crash.  Falling 
heavily  on  the  marble  floor,  it  rebounded  thence, 
and,  passing  between  the  powder-barrels,  describing 
a  wide  semicircle  as  it  went,  ricocheted  once  more 
and  struck  the  wall  opposite,  in  which  it  bored  a 
deep  hole,  whence  it  flashed  and  gleamed  with  a 
strong  red  glare,  forcing  blue  sparks  from  the  ni- 
trous humidity  of  the  walls. 

Ali  was  now  convinced  that  the  enemy  was  quite 
capable  of  keeping  his  promise. 

The  scared  woman,  mad  with  terror,  flung  her- 
self at  his  feet,  and  snatching  the  white  veil  from 
her  head,  forced  it  into  the  pasha's  hand. 

Tepelenti  hastily  seized  the  veil,  and,  hanging  it 
on  the  point  of  a  lance,  hoisted  it  out  of  the  round 
window. 

Outside  the  besiegers  set  up  a  shout  of  triumph. 
Eminah,  kissing  Ali's  hands,  sank  down  at  his  feet. 
Tepelenti  had  given  her  more  than  manhood  can 
bear  to  give  :  for  her  sake  he  had  humbled  his  pride 
to  the  dust.  If  only  he  could  have  died  as  he  had 
lived  ! 

"  Go,  now,"  he  said  to  the  woman,  with  a  sigh  ; 
"  go  and  tell  my  enemies  that  they  may  come  for 
me.  I  am  theirs  !" 


CHAPTER    XVII 
THE   SILVER    PEDESTAL   IN   FRONT   OP   THE    SERAGLIO 

THE  emissaries  of  Kurshid  Pasha  received  the 
veteran  warrior  with  great  respect  in  the  gates  of 
the  fortress,  whither  he  went  to  meet  them  ;  they 
showed  him  all  the  honor  due  to  his  rank  ;  they 
allowed  him  to  retain  his  sword  and  all  his  other 
weapons.  At  the  same  time  they  confirmed  by 
word  of  mouth  the  promise  which  Kurshid  Pasha 
had  given  to  Eminah  in  writing — that  the  execu- 
tioner should  never  lay  his  hand  on  Ali's  head,  and 
that  he  should  not  die  a  violent  death,  except  it 
were  in  an  honorable  duel  or  on  the  battle-field, 
which  is  a  delight  to  a  true  Mussulman. 

A  former  pleasure-house,  a  kiosk  on  the  island  of 
La  Gulia,  was  assigned  to  him  as  a  residence  for 
the  future.  There  they  conveyed  his  favorite 
horses,  his  favorite  slaves  and  birds,  and  took 
abundant  care  of  his  personal  comfort. 

AH  allowed  them  to  do  with  him  as  they  would. 
Neither  threatening  nor  pleasant  faces  made  any 
impression  upon  him  ;  he  merely  looked  from  time 
to  time  at  his  wife,  who  had  seized  his  hand,  and 
never  left  him  for  an  instant.  At  such  times 
softer,  gentler  feelings  were  legible  in  his  face ; 
but  at  other  times  he  would  gaze  steadily  before 
him  into  the  distance,  into  infinity.  Perhaps  he 


THE    SILVER   PEDESTAL  263 

was  now  thinking  within  himself,  "When  shall 
I  stand  in  front  of  the  Seraglio  on  a  silver  pedes- 
tal ?" 

The  dzJtin  of  Seleucia  had  prophesied  this  ter- 
mination to  his  career.  All  the  other  prophecies 
had  been  strictly  fulfilled ;  this  only  remained  to 
be  accomplished. 

A  Mussulman's  promise  is  stronger  than  his 
oath.  Who  does  not  remember  the  story  of  the 
Moorish  chieftain  in  whose  house  a  Christian  sol- 
dier had  taken  refuge,  and  who  begged  for  his  pro- 
tection ?  The  Moor  promised  the  man  his  protec- 
tion. Subsequently  the  pursuers  informed  the  Moor 
that  this  Christian  soldier  had  killed  his  son,  and 
still  the  father  would  not  give  up  the  fugitive, 
but  assisted  him  to  escape,  because  of  his  promise. 

"A  great  lord  is  the  sea,"  says  the  Kuran ;  "a 
great  lord  is  the  storm  and  the  pestilence  ;  but 
a  greater  lord  still  is  a  man's  given  word,  from 
which  there  is  no  escape." 

The  Mussulman  keeps  his  word,  but  beware  of  a 
play  upon  words,  for  therein  lies  death.  If  he  has 
sworn  by  the  sun,  avoid  the  moon,  and  if  he  has 
promised  to  love  thee  as  a  brother,  discover  first 
whether  he  hath  not  slain  his  brother. 

When  Sulaiman  adopted  Ibrahim  as  a  son,  he 
swore  that  so  long  as  he  lived  no  harm  should 
befall  Ibrahim.  Later  on,  when  Ibrahim  fell  into 
disgrace,  the  wise  Ulemas  discovered  a  text  in  the 
Kuran  according  to  which  he  who  sleeps  is  not 
alive,  and  they  slew  Ibrahim  while  Sulaiman  slept. 

Kurshid  had  given  his  word  and  a  written  as- 
surance that  Ali  should  not  die  at  the  hand  of  the 
executioner  ;  the  document  he  had  given  to  Ali's 


264  THE    LION    OP   JANINA 

wife,  his  word  he  had  given  in  the  presence  of  his 
whole  army  ;  and  he  had  escorted  Ali  Pasha  with 
all  due  honor  to  the  island  kiosk,  permitting  him 
to  retain  his  weapons  and  the  jewelled  sword  with 
which  he  had  won  so  many  victories,  with  which 
he  had  so  many  times  turned  the  tide  of  the  battle  ; 
nay,  more,  they  had  selected  fifty  of  Ali's  own  war- 
riors, the  bravest  and  the  most  faithful,  to  serve 
him  as  a  guard  of  honor. 

Nevertheless,  a  courier  despatched  in  hot  haste 
to  Stambul  announced  there,  from  Kurshid  Pasha, 
that  the  treasures  of  Ali  Tepelenti  of  Janina  were 
in  his  hands,  and  that  a  Tartar  horseman  would 
follow  in  three  days  with  the  head  of  the  old  pasha. 
And  yet  at  this  very  moment  Tepelenti's  head  stood 
firmly  on  his  shoulders,  and  who  would  dare  to 
say  that  that  head  was  promised  away  while  his 
good  sword  was  by  his  side,  and  good  comrades  in 
arms  were  around  him,  and  the  sworn  assurance  of 
the  seraskier  rested  upon  him  ? 

Eminah  never  quitted  him  for  a  moment.  She 
was  always  with  him.  She  sat  beside  him,  with  her 
head  on  his  breast,  or  at  his  feet,  and  in  her  hand 
she  carried  the  amnesty  of  the  seraskier,  so  that 
if  any  one  should  approach  Ali  with  dangerous  de- 
signs she  might  hold  it  before  his  eyes  like  a  magic 
buckler,  and  ward  off  the  axe  of  the  executioner 
from  his  head. 

But  there  was  nothing  to  guard  against;  the  ex- 
ecutioner did  not  approach  Ali.  He  received,  in- 
deed, a  great  many  visitors,  but  these  were  all  wor- 
thy, honorable  men,  musirs,  effendis,  officers  of  the 
army,  who  treated  him  with  all  respect,  and  sipped 
their  sherbet-cups  most  politely,  and  smoked  their 


THE    SILVER    PEDESTAL  265 

fragrant  chibooks,  exchanging  a  word  or  two  now 
and  then,  perhaps,  and  on  taking  their  leave  saluted 
him  in  a  manner  befitting  grave  Mussulmans. 

He  was  allowed  free  access  to  every  part  of  the 
island,  and  never  encountered  anybody  there  but 
his  own  warriors. 

At  such  times  great  ideas  would  occur  to  him. 
Perchance  with  these  fifty  men  he  might  win  back 
everything  once  more  ?  And  then  he  would  hug 
himself  with  the  thought  of  the  silver  pedestal  in 
front  of  the  Seraglio,  where  he  was  one  day  to  stand, 
amidst  the  joyful  plaudits  of  the  people  ;  and  then 
the  night  before  him  was  not  altogether  dark,  for 
here  and  there  he  saw  a  gleam  of  hope. 

It  was  only  Eminah  who  trembled.  God  has  cre- 
ated woman  for  this  very  purpose  ;  she  has  the  fac- 
ulty of  fearing  instead  of  man,  and  can  foresee  the 
danger  that  threatens  him. 

Whence  will  this  danger  come,  and  in  what  shape  ? 
Perchance  in  the  dagger  of  the  assassin  ?  The  wom- 
an's bosom  stood  between  it  and  the  heart  of  Ali ; 
the  assassin  will  not  be  able  to  pierce  it.  In  a  poi- 
soned cup,  perhaps  ?  Eminah  herself  tastes  of  every 
dish,  of  every  glass,  before  they  reach  the  hands  of 
Ali ;  the  power  of  the  poison  would  reach  her  first. 

And  yet  danger  is  near. 

One  day  they  told  Ali  that  an  illustrious  visitor 
was  coming  to  see  him  ;  Mehemet  Pasha,  the  sub- 
seraskier  and  governor  of  the  Morea,  wished  to  pay 
his  respects  to  him. 

This  was  a  great  honor  for  the  fallen  general.  Ali 
began  to  be  sensible  that  even  his  enemies  respect- 
ed him.  Who  knows?  he  might  find  good  friends 
amongst  his  very  enemies,  who  would  not  think  him 


266  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

too  old  for  use  and  employment  even  in  his  last  re- 
maining years. 

On  the  day  of  the  visit,  the  kiosk  was  swept  and 
garnished.  Tepelenti  put  on  his  most  costly  caftan, 
his  warriors  were  marshalled  in  front  of  his  dwell- 
ing, and  he  himself  went  out  on  horseback  to  meet 
the  seraskier  when  he  arrived,  with  an  escort  of  one 
hundred  mounted  spahis. 

Mehemet  Pasha  was  a  tall,  powerful  man,  the  hero 
of  many  a  fight  and  many  a  duel.  He  had  often 
given  proof  of  his  dexterity,  when  the  hostile  ar- 
mies stood  face  to  face,  by  galloping  betwixt  them 
and  challenging  the  bravest  warriors  on  the  other 
side  to  single  combat,  and  the  fact  that  he  was  alive 
at  the  present  moment  was  the  best  possible  proof 
that  he  had  been  always  victorious. 

The  two  heroes  exchanged  greetings  when  they 
met,  and  returned  together  to  the  pleasure-house. 
Ali  conducted  the  sub-seraskier  into  the  inner  apart- 
ments ;  the  attendants  remained  outside. 

A  richly  spread  table  awaited  them,  and  they  were 
waited  upon  by  a  group  of  young  odalisks,  the  hand- 
maidens of  Eminah,  who  sat  at  Ali's  feet  on  the  left- 
hand  side,  and,  as  usual,  tasted  of  every  dish  and 
cup  before  she  gave  it  to  Ali. 

Pleasant  conversation  filled  the  intervals  of  the 
repast,  and  at  the  end  of  it  a  mess  of  preserved  pis- 
tachios was  brought  in  and  presented  to  Mehemet 
Pasha. 

"  I  thank  thee,"  said  he,  "  and,  indeed,  I  am  very- 
fond  of  them,  but  piquant,  hot-spiced  meats  always 
awaken  within  me  sinful  desires  and  a  longing  for 
wine  which  is  forbidden  by  the  Prophet,  and,  as  a 
good  Mussulman,  I  would  rather  avoid  the  occasion 


THE    SILVER    PEDESTAL  267 

of  sinning  than  suffer  the  affliction  of  a  late  repent- 
ance." 

AH  laughed  aloud. 

"  Eat  and  be  of  good  cheer,  valiant  seraskier,"  said 
he,  "  and  set  thy  mind  at  rest.  What  I  give  thee  shall 
be  wine  and  yet  not  wine — the  juice  of  the  grape,  yet 
still  unfermented  ;  'tis  an  invention  of  the  Franks. 
This  the  Prophet  does  not  forbid.*  I  have  still  got 
a  case  of  bottles  thereof,  which  Bunaberdif  for- 
merly sent  me.  and  we  will  now  break  it  open  in  thy 
honor.  Truly  fizz  is  not  wine,  but  only  the  juice  of 
the  grape  which  they  bottle  before  it  becomes  wine. 
It  is  as  harmless  as  milk." 

Mehemet  shook  his  head  and  laughed,  from  which 
one  could  see  that  the  proposition  was  not  displeas- 
ing to  him,  whereupon  AH  beckoned  to  the  odalisks 
to  fetch  the  bottles  from  the  cellar. 

Eminah,  all  trembling,  bent  over  him  and  whis- 
pered, imploringly,  "  Oh,  put  not  wine  on  thy  table  ; 
it  will  be  dangerous  to  thee  !" 

AH  smiled,  and  stroked  his  wife's  head.  He 
thought  that  only  religious  scruples  made  her  dis- 
suade him  from  drinking  the  wine,  so  he  drew  her 
upon  his  bosom  and  began  to  reassure  her. 

"  Say  now,  my  one  and  only  flower,  is  not  Moses 
a  prophet,  like  unto  Muhammad  ?" 

"Of  a  truth  he  is.  His  tent  stands  beside  the" 
tent  of  Muhammad  in  the  Paradise  of  the  true  Be- 
lievers." 

"  And  yet  Moses  said  :  Give  wine  to  them  that  be 

*  The  Moslems  do  not  include  French  "  fizz  "  amongst  the  canon- 
ically  forbidden  drinks. 
f  Bonaparte. 


268  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

sorrowful !  Leave  the  matter  then  to  the  two  proph- 
ets up  above  there  ;  surely,  what  passes  through  our 
lips  does  not  make  us  sin?" 

But  that  was  not  the  reason  why  Eminah  feared 
the  wine. 

They  brought  the  bottles,  and  the  liberated  corks 
popped  merrily.  At  first  Mehemet  Pasha  hesitated, 
but  they  filled  his  glass  with  fizz  and,  to  prevent  the 
sparkling  foam  from  running  over,  he  sipped  a  little 
of  it,  and  quickly  drained  the  glass,  maintaining  af- 
terwards, with  a  smile,  that  it  was  a  similar  drink  to 
wine,  but  much  more  pleasant. 

AH  filled  once  more  the  glass  of  the  seraskier, 
while  Eminah  tremulously  watched  his  features, 
which  gradually  grew  darker  as  he  drank.  Drink 
has  this  effect  on  some  men. 

Suddenly  the  sub-seraskier  dashed  his  glass  upon 
the  table  and  exclaimed,  with  a  furious  expression 
of  countenance  : 

"  I'll  drink  no  more !  I'll  drink  no  more  !  Thou 
art  a  villain,  AH  !  Thou  hast  made  me  drink  wine 
and  hast  lied  to  me,  saying  it  was  not  wine ;  but  it 
is  wine,  a  frightful,  burning  drink,  which  has  made 
my  head  whirl." 

"  Come,  come,  Mehemet,"  said  AH,  in  the  coaxing 
tone  one  uses  to  drunken  men,  "be  not  so  wrath- 
•ful." 

.  "  Speak  not  to  me,  thou  dog  !"  thundered  the 
other,  striking  the  table  with  his  fist.  "  I  might 
have  known  when  I  dismounted  at  thy  door  with 
whom  I  had  to  do,  thou  sly,  treacherous  fox,  thou 
godless  renegade  !" 

AH  leaped  from  his  seat  with  flashing  eyes,  and 
clapped  his  hand  on  the  hilt  of  his  sword  at  these 


THE    SILVER    PEDESTAL  269 

words  ;  but  Eminah  seized  his  hand,  and  said  to 
him,  in  a  terrified  whisper  : 

"  Draw  not  thy  sword,  AH  ;  show  no  weapons 
here !  Dost  thou  not  perceive  that  he  only  came 
hither  to  fasten  a  quarrel  upon  thee  ?" 

Ali  instantly  recovered  himself  at  these  words. 
He  saw  now  the  snare  that  had  been  laid  for  him, 
and  calmly  sat  down  in  his  place  again,  crossing 
his  legs  beneath  him,  and,  quietly  taking  up  his 
chibook,  began  to  smoke  with  an  air  of  unconcern. 

Meanwhile,  Mehemet  played  his  drunken  role 
still  further. 

"  I  might  have  known  beforehand,  when  I  sat 
down  at  table  with  thee,  that  I  was  sitting  down 
with  an  accursed  wretch,  thou  blood-thirsty  dog, 
who  hath  lapped  up  the  blood  of  thy  kinsfolk  ;  but 
I  never  ventured  to  imagine  that  thou  wouldst  be 
audacious  enough  to  make  me  drink  that  abomi- 
nable liquid — may  its  sinfulness  fall  back  again  on 
thine  accursed  head !" 

With  these  words  Mehemet  caught  up  the  half 
full  glass  and  pitched  all  the  wine  that  was  in  it 
straight  between  Ali's  eyes,  so  that  it  trickled  down 
the  full  length  of  his  long  white  beard. 

Ali,  with  the  utmost  sang-froid,  beckoned  to  the 
attendant  odalisks  to  place  before  him  a  bowl  of 
fresh  water,  in  which  he  washed  his  face  and  beard.' 
He  did  not  answer  the  sub-seraskier  a  single  word. 

Mehemet  planted  himself  in  front  of  him  with  a 
contemptuous  expression. 

"  Wretched  worm  !  that  can  wipe  away  such  an 
insult  so  tamely  !  Thou  wert  never  valiant,  thy 
heroic  deeds  were  so  many  murders.  Those  whom 
thou  didst  slay,  thou  didst  butcher  as  doth  a  heads- 


270  THE   LION   OF   JANINA 

man.  Thou  couldst  surprise  like  a  thief,  but  to 
fight  like  a  man  was  never  thy  way,  and  the  blood 
that  stains  thee  is  the  blood  of  fettered  slaves. 
Thou  abominable  thing  !  The  very  victory  is  abom- 
inable which  we  have  gained  over  such  a  writhing 
worm  as  thou  art.  I  should  pity  my  sword  if  it 
ever  came  into  contact  with  thine.  Let  others  say 
if  they  will  that  they  have  conquered  Ali,  I  will  only 
say  that  I  have  struck  Ali  Tepelenti  in  the  face." 

"  By  Allah,  the  one  true  God,  that  thou  shall  never 
say  !"  thundered  Ali,  leaping  from  his  seat ;  and 
quickly  drawing  his  sword,  he  whirled  it  like  a  glit- 
tering circle  through  the  air. 

Mehemet  retreated  a  step  backward,  and  drew 
his  Damascus  blade  with  a  satisfied  air. 

"  Fight  not,  Ali ;  go  inside  !"  exclaimed  Eminah, 
violently  seizing  Ali  by  the  sword-arm. 

Tepelenti  shook  her  off  and,  with  his  sword  flash- 
ing above  his  head,  fell  upon  the  sub-seraskier. 
Mehemet  parried  the  stroke  with  his  sword,  and  the 
next  instant  a  huge  jet  of  blood  leaped  into  the  air 
from  Ali's  shoulder. 

Eminah,  full  of  despair,  flung  herself  between  the 
combatants.  She  saw  that  Ali  was  bleeding  pro- 
fusely, and  throwing  one  arm  around  his  knee,  with 
the  other  hand  she  held  up  before  the  seraskier  the 
amnesty  of  Kurshid  Pasha. 

"  Look  at  that !  The  general  swore  that  Tepe- 
lenti should  not  be  slain." 

"  Not  by  the  executioner,"  replied  Mehemet ; 
"  but  he  did  not  guarantee  him  against  the  sword  of 
a  warrior.  Come,  thou  coward  !  or  wilt  thou  hide 
behind  the  petticoat  of  thy  wife  ?" 

Eminah  stretched  out  her  arms  towards  Ali,  but 


THE   SILVER   PEDESTAL  271 

the  old  man  thrust  her  aside  and  rushed  upon 
Mehemet  Pasha  once  more  ;  but  before  he  could 
reach  him  another  thrust  pierced  him  through  the 
heart.  Without  a  sob  he  collapsed  at  the  feet  of  his 
foe. 

The  terrified  odalisks  rushed  shrieking  into  the 
camp,  whilst  outside  a  bloody  combat  began  between 
the  warriors  of  Mehemet  and  the  warriors  of  Ali. 
The  former  were  numerous,  so  it  was  not  long  be- 
fore Tepelenti's  guards  were  cut  down,  and  Mehe- 
met, with  a  contented  countenance,  returned  to 
camp.  A  silken-net  bag  was  hanging  to  his  saddle- 
bow, and  in  it  was  the  head  of  Ali. 

Kurshid  Pasha  washed  his  hand  when  the  head 
was  placed  before  him. 

"  I  was  not  the  cause  of  thy  death  !"  he  cried. 
"I  guaranteed  thee  against  the  headsman,  but  not 
against  the  sword  of  warriors.  Why  didst  thou  pro- 
voke the  lion  ?" 

On  the  day  fixed,  beforehand,  the  Tartar  horse- 
man arrived  in  Stambul  with  the  head  of  Ali.  The 
hours  of  his  life  had  been  calculated  exactly.  An 
astronomer  who  determines  the  distances  between 
constellation  and  constellation  is  not  more  accurate 
in  his  calculations  than  was  Kurshid  in  determining 
the  date  of  his  enemy's  death. 

On  that  day  the  Sultan  held  high  festival. 

The  Tsirogan  palace,  the  Seraglio,  all  the  foun- 
tains were  illuminated,  and  Ali's  head  was  carried 
through  the  principal  streets  of  the  town  in  trium- 
phal procession,  and  finally  exhibited  on  a  ^silver 
salver  in  front  of  the  middle  gate  of  the  Seraglio  in 
the  sight  of  all  the  people. 

So  there  he  stood  at  last,  on  a  silver  pedestal  in 


272  THE   LION   OF  JANINA 

front  of  the  Seraglio.  And  the  prophecy  was  ful- 
filled which  had  said,  "A  time  will  come  when  thou 
shalt  be  in  two  places  at  once,  in  Stambul  and  in 
Janina  !"  So  it  was. 

Ali's  dead  body  was  buried  at  Janina,  and  his 
head,  at  the  same  time,  was  standing  in  front  of  the 
Seraglio.  At  Janina,  a  single  mourning  woman  was 
weeping  over  the  headless  corpse ;  at  Stambul,  a 
hundred  thousand  inquisitive  idlers  were  shouting 
around  the  bodyless  head. 

At  that  gate  where  the  head  of  AH  was  exhibited 
the  throng  was  so  great  that  many  people  were 
crushed  to  death  by  the  gaping  sight-seers,  who  had 
all  come  hither  to  stare  at  the  gray-bearded  face, 
before  whose  wrathful  look  a  whole  realm  had 
trembled. 

At  last,  on  the  evening  of  the  third  day,  when  the 
well-feasted  mob  had  stared  their  fill  and  begun  to 
disperse,  there  drew  nigh  to  the  gate  of  the  Seraglio 
an  old  yellow-faced  fakir  who,  from  the  appearance 
of  his  eyes,  was  evidently  blind.  His  clothing  con- 
sisted of  a  simple  sackcloth  mantle,  girded  lightly 
round  the  waist  by  a  cotton  girdle,  from  which  hung 
a  long  roll  of  manuscript ;  on  his  head  he  wore  a 
high  mortar-shaped  hat,  the  distinguishing  mark  of 
the  Omarites. 

All  the  people  standing  about  respectfully  made 
way  for  him  as,  with  downcast  eyes  and  hands 
stretched  forth,  he  groped  his  way  along,  and,  with- 
out any  one  guidkig  him,  made  his  way  straight  up 
to  Tepelenti's  head. 

There  he  stood  and  laid  his  right  hand  on  the 
severed  head,  none  preventing  him. 

And  lo  !  it  seemed  to  those  who  stood  round  as  if 


THE    SILVER    PEDESTAL  273 

the  severed  head  slowly  opened  its  eyes  and  looked 
upon  the  new-comer  with  cold,  stony,  stiff,  dim  eye- 
balls. This  only  lasted  for  a  moment,  and  then  the 
Omarite  took  his  hand  off  the  head  and  the  eyes 
closed  again.  Perhaps  it  was  but  an  illusion,  after 
all! 

Then  the  dervish  spoke.  His  deep,  grave  voice 
sank  into  the  hearts  of  all  who  heard  him  :  "  Go  to 
Mahmoud,  and  tell  him  that  I  have  bought  from  him 
the  head  of  Ali  Pasha  and  the  heads  of  his  three  sons, 
Sulaiman,  Vely,  and  Mukhtar,  and  a  whole  empire 
is  the  price  I  pay  him  therefor." 

"What  empire  art  thou  able  to  give?"  inquired 
the  captain  of  the  ciauses  who  were  guarding  the 
head. 

"  That  which  is  the  fairest  of  all,  that  which  is 
nearest  to  his  heart,  that  which  he  had  the  least 
hope  of — his  own  empire." 

These  bold  words  were  reported  to  the  Sultan,  and 
the  Grand  Signior  summoned  the  Omarite  dervish 
to  the  palace,  and  shut  himself  up  alone  with  him 
till  late  at  night.  When  the  muezzin  intoned  the 
fifth  namazat,  towards  midnight,  Mahmoud  dis- 
missed the  dervish.  What  they  said  to  each  other 
remained  a  secret  known  only  to  themselves.  The 
fakir,  on  emerging  from  the  Sultan's  dressing-room, 
plucked  a  piece  of  coal  from  a  censer,  and  wrote  on 
the  white  alabaster  wall  this  sentence,  "  Rather  be 
a  head  without  a  hand  than  a  hand  without  a  head," 
and  nobody  but  the  Sultan  understood  that  saying. 

Mahmoud  commanded  that  nine  purses  of  gold 
should  be  given  to  the  dervish ;  he  gave  him  also 
the  heads  of  Ali  and  of  Ali's  three  sons. 

The  dervish  left  the  Seraglio  with  the  four  heads' 
18 


274  THE    LIOX    OF   JANINA 

and  the  nine  purses.  With  the  nine  purses  he 
bought  an  empty  field  in  front  of  the  Selembrian 
gate  and  planted  it  with  cypress-trees,  and  at  the 
foot  of  every  cypress  he  set  up  a  white  turban- 
ed  tombstone — there  were  hundreds  and  hundreds 
side-by-side  without  inscriptions.  He  said,  too,  that 
it  would  not  be  long  before  the  owners  of  these 
tombs  arrived.  In  the  middle  of  this  cemetery, 
moreover,  he  dug  a  wide  grave,  and  in  it  he  buried 
the  heads  of  Ali's  three  sons,  with  their  father's 
head  in  the  middle.  He  erected  four  turbaned 
tombstones  over  them,  two  at  the  head  and  two  at 
the  foot  of  the  grave,  and  on  the  largest  of  these 
tombstones  was  written  :  "  Here  lies  the  valiant 
Ali  Tepelenti,  Pasha  of  Janina,  leaving  behind  him 
many  other  warriors  who  deserve  death  just  as 
much  as  he." 

The  people  murmured  because  of  what  was  writ- 
ten on  the  tomb,  but  who  durst  obliterate  what  is 
inscribed  on  the  dwellings  of  the  dead  ? 

There  the  mysterious  inscription  remained  on 
the  tomb  for  four  years,  and  in  the  fourth  year  its 
meaning  was  revealed. 

Now  this  dervish  was  the  dzliin  of  Seleucia. 


CHAPTER    XVIII 
THE     BROKEN     SWORDS 

"Allah  Kerim! 
Allah  akbar  ! 
Great  is  God  and  mighty  !" 

WHAT  avails  prayer  if  there  be  no  longer  any  to 
hearken  ?  What  avails  the  bright  sword  if  there 
be  none  to  wield  it?  What  avails  the  open  book 
if  there  be  none  to  understand  what  is  written 
therein  ? 

Ye  nations  of  the  half -moon  !  now  is  the  time 
when  the  song  of  the  dervishes,  and  the  scimitar, 
and  the  dirk,  and  the  Kuran,  can  help  no  more ! 
From  the  west  and  from  the  north  strange  people 
are  coming,  armed  warriors  in  serried  ranks,  like  a 
wall  of  steel,  who  are  set  in  motion,  brought  to  a 
stand-still,  expanded  into  an  endless  line,  contract- 
ed into  a  solid  mass  by  a  single  brief  word  of  com- 
mand. Before  the  charge  of  their  bayonets  the 
ranks  of  the  Janissaries  scatter  and  disperse  like 
chaff  before  the  wind,  and  before  their  fire- vomiting 
brazen  tubes  the  flowers  of  Begtash's  garden  fall 
like  grass  before  the  mower.  Wise  men  are  with 
them,  who  go  about  in  simple  black  coats,  who  know 
much  that  ye  do  not  know ;  each  one  of  whom  is 
capable  of  directing  a  state,  and  who  are  equally 


276  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

triumphant  on  the  battle-field  and  in  the  council- 
chamber. 

In  vain  ye  call  upon  the  name  of  the  Prophet, 
in  vain  do  ye  knock  at  the  gate  of  Paradise.  It 
is  closed.  Muhammad  slumbers,  and  the  other 
prophets  no  longer  trouble  themselves  about  earthly 
affairs.  Paradise  is  full  already.  There  they  look 
askance  now  at  new  -  comers,  who  reach  the 
shadow  of  the  tuba -tree  without  the  rumor  of 
victory.  The  eternally  young  houris,  from  beyond 
the  Bridge  of  Alsiroth,  no  longer  smile  upon  those 
who  fall  in  battle,  for  battle  has  now  lost  its  glory. 
Ye  must  be  born  again,  or  die  forever. 

Look  now  !  the  more  far-seeing  ones  among  you 
know  what  to  do.  They  send  their  children  far, 
far  away,  to  the  dominions  of  the  Giaours,  there 
to  learn  worldly  wisdom,  and  prepare  to  make  great 
changes  in  the  empire. 

The  old  dervishes,  the  friends  of  the  Turks,  are 
excluded  from  the  Seraglio ;  they  do  but  creep 
stealthily  up  and  peep  through  the  guarded  gates, 
and  compare  notes  with  one  another,  "  Behold ! 
within  there,  they  are  doing  the  work  of  the 
stranger,  they  are  teaching  the  true  -  believing 
warriors  to  leap  to  and  fro  at  a  word  of  command, 
and  twirl  their  weapons.  They  have  abandoned 
the  jiride,  that  ever-victorious  weapon,  and  have 
stuck  darts  at  the  ends  of  their  muskets,  as  do  the 
unbelievers,  who  dare  not  come  within  sword-dis- 
tance of  the  enemy.  It  is  all  over,  all  over  with 
the  faith  of  Osman." 

Most  jealous  of  all  these  innovations  were  the 
priests  of  Begtash.  One  could  every  moment  see 
them  in  their  ragged,  dirty  mantles,  lounging  about 


THE    BROKEN    SWORDS  277 

in  front  of  the  gates  of  the  Seraglio,  impudently 
looking  in  the  faces  of  all  who  go  in  and  out ;  and 
if  an  imam  passed  them,  or  one  of  those  wise  men 
who  favored  the  innovations,  they  would  spit  after 
him,  and  exclaim  in  a  loud  voice,  "  Death  to  every 
one  who  proclaims  the  forbidden  word  !" 

Now  this  forbidden  word  was  the  name  "  Ne- 
shandchi."  The  mob  of  Stambul  had  murdered 
Mahmoud's  father  because  of  this  name,  which 
designated  a  new  order  of  soldiers,  and  his  successor 
had  been  compelled  to  order  that  whoever  pro- 
nounced this  name  should  be  put  to  death. 

The  mob  would  often  follow  the  Grand  Vizier  all 
the  way  to  the  palace,  reviling  him  all  the  way, 
and  shouting  up  at  the  windows,  "  Remember  the 
end  of  Bajraktar  !" 

Bajraktar  had  been  the  Sultan's  Grand  Vizier 
fourteen  years  before,  who  had  wished  to  reform 
the  Turkish  army,  on  which  account  a  riot  broke 
out  at  Stambul,  which  lasted  till  the  partisans  of 
Bajraktar  were  removed  from  office.  As  for  Baj- 
raktar himself,  he  was  burned  to  death  in  one  of 
his  palaces,  together  with  his  wife  and  children. 
Every  one  who  took  part  in  these  mysterious  and 
accursed  deliberations  in  the  Seraglio,  from  the 
lowliest  soldier  to  the  sacred  and  sublime  Sultan 
himself,  carried  his  life  in  his  hands. 

It  had  long  been  rumored  that  some  great 
movement  was  on  foot,  and  the  priests  of  Begtash 
went  from  town  to  town  through  all  the  Turkish 
domains  fanning  the  fanaticism  of  their  beloved 
children,  the  Janissaries,  and  gradually  collecting 
them  in  Stambul.  In  those  days  there  were  more 
than  twenty  thousand  Janissaries  within  the  walls 


278  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

of  the  capital,  not  including  the  corporation  of 
water-carriers  who  generally  made  common  cause 
with  them  in  times  of  uproar.  When  their  lord- 
ships, the  Janissaries,  set  the  place  on  fire,  it  was 
the  duty  of  the  water  -  carriers  to  put  out  the 
flames,  whereupon  they  plundered  comfortably  to- 
gether ;  hence  the  ancient  understanding  between 
them. 

With  the  exception  of  the  Ulemas,  only  the  blind 
fakirs  of  the  Omarite  order  were  admitted  into  the 
council  of  the  Divan,  and  their  chief,  Behram, 
often  took  counsel  with  the  Sultan  for  hours  to- 
gether when  he  was  alone. 

On  the  23d  May,  1826,  at  the  invitation  of  the 
chief  mufti,  all  the  Ulemas  assembled  in  the  Se- 
raglio and  decided  unanimously  that,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  words  of  the  Kuran,  it  was  lawful  to 
fight  the  enemy  with  his  own  weapons. 

Six  days  later  they  reassembled,  and  then  the 
Sheik-ul-Islam  laid  before  them  a  fetva,  by  which 
it  was  proclaimed  that  a  standing  army  was  to  be 
raised  for  the  defence  of  the  realm.  In  order,  how- 
ever, that  nobody  might  pronounce  the  accursed 
name  of  Neshandchi,  three  names  were  given  to 
the  corps  of  the  army  to  be  raised.  The  first  was 
akinji,  or  "  rushers,"  these  were  the  young  con- 
scripts ;  the  second  was  taalimliiaske,  "  practised 
men,"  these  were  selected  from  the  soldiers  of  the 
Seraglio  ;  the  third  name  was  khankiar  begerdi, 
and  designated  the  corps  to  be  chosen  from  amongst 
the  Janissaries.  This  name  meant  "  the  will  of  the 
emperor,"  yet  the  word  "knankiar"  means,  in 
Turkish,  by  itself,  "  effusion  of  blood." 

When  the  fetva  came  to  be  signed,  very  few  of 


THE    BROKEN   SWORDS  279 

the   leaders  of  the  Janissaries  were  present,  but, 
amongst  those  who  were  was  the  Janissary  Aga, 
or  colonel,  and  his  name  stood  there  alongside  the 
name  of  the  Sheik-ul-Islam,  the  Grand  Vizier,  and 
Najib  Effendi. 

Early  next  morning  the  people  of  Stambul  read 
the  fetva,  which  was  posted  up  at  every  corner. 
The  decisive  word  had  been  spoken  which  was  to 
evoke  the  bloody  spectre  to  whom  so  many  crowned 
heads  had  been  sacrificed. 

The  first  day  a  fearful  expectation  prevailed. 
Every  one  awaited  the  tempest,  and  prepared  for 
it.  The  Sultan  was  passing  the  time  at  his  sum- 
mer palace,  Bekshishtash,  so,  at  least,  it  was  said. 
An  anxious,  tormenting,  and  bloody  pastime  it 
proved  to  be. 

In  one  wing  of  his  palace  were  the  damsels  of 
the  harem,  in  the  others  the  chief  Ulemas  and 
councillors.  Mahmoud  paced  from  one  room  to 
another,  and  found  peace  nowhere. 

Hundreds  of  times  he  sat  in  a  row  with  his  wise 
men,  and  caused  the  annals  of  the  Ottoman  Empire 
by  his  favorite  historian,  Ezaad  Effendi,  to  be  read 
aloud  to  him,  and  yet  it  was  a  terror  to  him  to  lis- 
ten. The  whole  history  from  beginning  to  end  was 
written  in  blood  !  The  same  principles  always  pro- 
duced the  same  fruits  !  How  many  Grand  Viziers, 
how  many  Padishahs,  had  not  fallen  ?  Their  blood 
had  flowed  in  streams  from  the  throne,  which  had 
never  tottered  as  it  now  tottered  beneath  him. 
And  when  he  returned  to  the  harem,  and  the  charm- 
ing odalisks  appeared  before  him  with  their  music 
and  dances,  and  Milieva  amongst  them,  the  loveliest 
of  them  all,  to  whom  in  an  hour  of  rapture  he  had 


280  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

given  the  rose-garden  of  his  realm,  Damascus,  he 
bethought  him  that  perchance  to-morrow,  or  even 
that  very  night,  those  sweetly  smiling  heads  might 
all  be  cut  off,  seized  by  their  flowing  locks  and  cast 
in  heaps,  while  their  dear  and  tender  bodies  might 
be  sent  swimming  in  the  cold  waves  of  the  Bos- 
phorus,  to  serve  as  food  for  the  monsters  of  the 
deep.  Who  knows  how  many  hours,  who  knows 
how  many  moments,  they  have  still  to  live? 

Every  hour,  every  moment,  the  tidings  arrive 
from  Stambul  that  the  Janissaries  are  assembling 
in  menacing  crowds,  and  now  the  conflagrations 
begin  ;  every  day  fires  break  out  in  three  or  four 
parts  of  the  town,  but  the  heavy  rains  prevented 
any  great  damage  from  being  done.  This  was  al- 
ways the  way  in  which  the  riots  began  in  Stambul. 

The  priests  of  Begtash  stirred  up  the  fanaticism 
of  the  masses  in  front  of  the  mosques  and  in  the 
public  squares,  incited  the  mob  which  had  joined 
the  ranks  of  the  Janissaries  to  acts  of  outrage 
against  the  Sultan's  officials  and  those  of  the  Ule- 
mas,  softas,  and  Omarite  fakirs  who  were  in  favor 
of  the  reforms. 

On  July  i4th  a  rumor  spread  that  a  company  of 
Janissaries,  actuated  by  strong  suspicion,  had  sur- 
rounded the  cemetery  which  had  been  laid  out  and 
enclosed  by  the  Omarite  fakir,  and  cut  down  all  the 
dervishes  they  found  there,  and  amongst  them  their 
chief,  Behram.  They  found  upon  him  a  bundle  of 
papers  which  plainly  revealed  that  a  secret  under- 
standing existed  between  him  and  the  great  men 
of  the  Seraglio.  They  also  found  in  his  girdle  a 
metal  plate,  on  which  was  the  following  inscription  : 

"  I  am  Behram,  the   son  of   Halil  Patrona,  the 


THE    BROKEN    SWORDS  281 

strong  man,  and  of  Giil-Bejaze,*  the  prophetess. 
My  father  in  his  lifetime  began  a  great  work,  which 
after  his  death  I  continued.  This  work  will  only 
be  accomplished  and  confirmed  when  I  am  dead 
and  there  is  no  further  need  of  me.  Blessed  be 
he  who  knoweth  the  hours  of  his  life  and  of  his 
death." 

Those  who  were  acquainted  with  the  life  and 
the  end  of  Halil  Patrona  knew  right  well  what 
this  great  work  was  thus  mentioned  by  Behram, 
who  had  lived  one  hundred  and  eight  years  after 
his  father's  death,  and  had  striven  all  that  time  to 
develop  and  mature  the  ideas  which  the  former  had 
vainly  attempted  to  carry  out  at  the  point  of  the 
sword. 

The  mob  tore  the  dervish  to  pieces  and  distrib- 
uted his  bleeding  limbs  as  trophies,  and  then,  like 
wild  beasts  who  have  scented  blood,  they  attacked 
the  castles  of  the  great  men.  Whom  should  they 
fall  upon  first  ?  That  was  the  only  question. 

Suddenly  one  of  the  priests  of  Begtash  tore  down 
from  the  corner  of  the  street  a  copy  of  the  fetva 
which  proclaimed  the  reform  and  showed  it  to  the 
mob.  "  Behold  !"  cried  he,  u  here,  foremost  amongst 
the  names  of  the  destroyers  of  the  Faith  stands 
the  name  of  the  Janissary  Aga  !  The  leader  of  the 
Janissaries  has  himself  betrayed  his  own  children. 
Death  to  him  !" 

"  Death  to  him  !"  howled  the  mob,  and,  seizing 
their  torches,  they  rushed  towards  the  palace  of  the 
Janissary  Aga. 

The  Janissary  Aga  heard  the  tumult,  and,  quick- 

*  The  heroine  of  Jokai's  White  Rose. 


282  THE    LION   OP  JANINA 

ly  dressing  a  slave  in  his  robes,  mingled  with  the 
crowd,  and,  without  being  noticed,  reached  the  pal- 
ace of  the  Grand  Vizier  in  safety. 

The  Grand  Vizier  was  sitting  down  to  supper 
when  the  Janissary  Aga  rushed  in  and  informed 
him  of  his  danger.  He  lost  no  time  in  barricading 
the  gates,  and,  slipping  through  his  garden  with  his 
servants  and  his  family,  escaped  across  the  Bos- 
phorus  to  the  Jali  Kiosk,  on  the  other  side  of  the 
water.  The  besieging  mob,  therefore,  only  found 
empty  walls  upon  which  to  wreak  their  fury,  and 
these  they  levelled  with  the  ground. 

But  the  Janissary  Aga  had  left  his  wives  and 
children  in  his  palace,  and  these  the  rioters  seized 
and  murdered  with  the  most  excruciating  tortures. 
In  the  evening  twilight  the  Aga,  from  his  place  of 
safety  on  the  other  side  of  the  water,  could  see  the 
flames  of  his  palace  shooting  up  towards  the  sky, 
and  heard  perchance  the  agonized  death  -  cries  of 
those  he  loved  best. 

A  few  moments  later  they  were  joined  by  Ned  jib 
Effendi,  the  representative  of  the  Viceroy  of  Egypt, 
who  also  took  refuge  with  them  and  brought  the 
tidings  that  the  insurgents  were  in  possession  of 
the  whole  of  Stambul,  and  had  wreaked  their  sav- 
age fury  on  the  families  of  the  refugee  mag- 
nates. 

The  Sultan  was  standing  on  the  roof  of  his  pal- 
ace, whence  he  could  view  far  away  the  spreading 
scarlet  glow  of  the  conflagration  which  lit  up  the 
night  with  a  terrifying  glare,  whose  fiery  columns 
were  reflected  in  the  black  Bosphorus. 

Panic-stricken  fugitives  spread  the  report  that 
the  Seraglio  itself  was  in  flames,  and  indeed  it  looked 


THE    BROKEN    SWORDS  283 

in  the  distance  as  if  the  fiery  waves  had  reached  its 
cupolaed  towers. 

Mahmoud  spent  the  whole  night  in  prayer.  Two 
hours  after  midnight  a  horseman  arrived  who  had 
forced  his  way  through  Stambul,  his  good  steed 
collapsing  as  it  reached  the  cypress  grove  of  Bek- 
shishtash.  The  horseman  himself  demanded  an 
audience  of  the  Sultan,  and  was  instantly  admitted. 

A  bright  momentary  ray  of  hope  was  visible  on 
the  face  of  Mahmoud  as  he  recognized  the  horse- 
man. It  was  Thomar,  now  the  Akinji  Feriki,  the 
bravest  warrior  in  the  three  continents  of  the  Otto- 
man Empire. 

When  Mahmoud  had  quitted  the  Seraglio  he  had 
picked  out  sixteen  young  horsemen  from  amongst 
his  retinue,  and  left  them  behind  in  the  palace,  with 
the  injunction  that  if  a  rebellion  should  break  out 
in  Stambul,  which  was  pretty  certainly  to  be  antic- 
ipated, they  were  to  cut  their  way  through  the 
enemy  and  bring  him  word  thereof.  Thomar  alone 
had  arrived — the  other  fifteen  had  been  killed  by 
the  rebels ;  he  had  cut  out  a  road  for  himself  and 
contrived  to  reach  Bekshishtash. 

"  The  dragon  has  raised  all  his  twelve  heads,  my 
master,"  said  he  to  the  Sultan  ;  "  now  is  the  time 
to  cut  them  all  off,  or  it  will  devour  thy  empire." 

The  Sultan,  who  greatly  loved  the  youth,  wiped 
the  sweat  from  his  face  with  his  own  handkerchief, 
and  bade  him  await  him  below  in  the  banqueting- 
chamber.  , 

And  with  that  he  resumed  his  devotions. 

Towards  five  o'clock,  when  the  sun  rose  from  be- 
hind the  blue  hills  of  Asia  in  all  its  glory,  the  Sultan 
descended  from  the  roof  of  his  palace  and  com- 


284  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

manded  his  servants  and  men-at-arms  to  form  in 
rank  in  front  of  the  palace.  All  the  fighting-men 
he  had  with  him  were  a  thousand  akinjis  and  about 
as  many  horsemen,  silchidars,  and  bostanjis.  He 
himself  first  went  to  take  leave  of  his  womenkind. 

Those  who  had  seen  his  face  but  an  hour  ago 
were  amazed  at  the  change  that  had  come  over 
it.  Its  generally  mild  and  peaceful  expression  had 
given  place  to  a  proud  resentment  and  a  death-de- 
fying audacity.  He  embraced  his  wife  and  the 
Sultana  Asseki,  and  finally  his  son,  the  heir  to  the 
throne.  Not  a  tear  was  visible  on  his  face  as  he 
embraced  his  beloved  ones.  They  all  noticed  a 
new  vigor  flashing  from  his  eyes  ;  he  looked  as  if  he 
were  inspired.  He  had  no  need  now  for  any  to  en- 
courage him. 

As  he  held  one  arm  round  his  wife  and  the  other 
round  his  child,  he  said  to  them,  "  And  now  I  go. 
My  path  leads  me  into  Stambul ;  whether  it  will 
lead  me  back  again  I  know  not.  But  I  swear  that 
if  I  do  return  it  will  be  as  the  veritable  ruler  of  my 
realm.  What  will  ye  do  if  I  perish  ?" 

The  face  of  Milieva  glowed  at  this  question.  She 
led  Mahmoud  aside  into  the  back  part  of  the  room. 
There  the  Sultan  perceived  a  large  heap  of  pillows 
and  cushions. 

"  If  Mahmoud  perishes,"  said  the  Circassian  girl, 
enthusiastically,  "those  who  loved  him  will  discover 
a  way  of  following  him  ;  yea,  thine  enemies,  when 
they  look  for  us,  will  only  find  our  ashes  here." 

Mahmoud  kissed  the  girl  on  the  forehead  ;  she 
was  indeed  worthy  to  sit  at  the  foot  of  the  throne. 

With  that  he  descended  into  the  court-yard,  and 
they  led  his  good  steed  in  front  of  the  arched  door. 


THE    BROKEN   SWORDS  285 

The  Sultan  beckoned  to  Thomar  to  hold  the  reins 
while  he  mounted,  then  he  detached  an  agate  from 
the  heron  plume  that  waved  above  his  turban,  and 
fastened  it  on  the  fez  of  the  youth  as  he  knelt  be- 
fore him. 

"  I  name  thee  leader  of  the  akinjis  ;  and  now  who- 
ever has  a  sword,  let  him  show  that  he  is  worthy  of 
our  ancestors  !" 

With  these  words  the  Padishah  drew  his  scimitar, 
and,  galloping  to  the  front  of  his  horsemen,  took  the 
place  of  command.  A  moment  later  the  little  host 
was  already  on  its  way  to  Stambul.  In  front  marched 
the  akinjis  with  glittering  bayonets  ;  in  the  centre 
was  the  Sultan  with  his  suite  ;  the  rear  was  brought 
up  by  the  horsemen  and  the  gardeners.  Every  one 
of  them  was  resolved  to  die  honorably  and  glori- 
ously. 

On  reaching  the  city  the  bold  band  met  at  first 
with  but  little  opposition,  for  they  came  unawares. 
The  rebels  were  weary  from  the  exertions  of  the 
previous  night.  After  putting  out  the  conflagra- 
tion the  mob  had  set  to  work  plundering,  and  tow- 
ards morning  the  greater  part  of  it  had  dispersed 
amongst  the  coffee-houses  and  other  places  of  amuse- 
ment. 

Mahmoud  and  his  aggressive  band  met  with  no 
opposition  right  up  to  the  Seraglio.  The  streets 
indeed  were  thronged  by  a  noisy  mob,  but  it  made 
way  at  once  before  the  serried  ranks  of  the  akinjis. 
None  insulted  the  Sultan  by  so  much  as  an  offen- 
sive word  ;  on  the  contrary,  cries  of  admiration 
were  audible  here  and  there.  Men  were  astounded 
when  they  beheld  the  Padishah  appear  with  a  hand- 
ful of  armed  men  amidst  the  raging  tempest,  and 


286  THE    LION    OF   JANINA 

permitted  him  to  enter  the  gates  of  the  Seraglio  in 
peace. 

The  shout  bursting  through  all  the  doors,  which 
resounded  for  some  minutes  from  the  inside  of  the 
place,  announced  to  those  outside  what  courage  the 
appearance  of  the  Sultan  had  instilled  into  the 
hearts  of  those  of  his  warriors  who  were  shut  up 
in  the  Seraglio. 

Kara  Makan,  full  of  amazement,  withdrew  the 
bulk  of  the  rebels  from  the  Grand  Signior's  palace 
and  massed  the  Janissaries  near  the  Etmeidan, 
where  banners  were  hoisted  side  by  side  with  the 
subverted  kettles.  At  the  corners  of  the  streets 
the  wild  priests  of  Begtash  continued  to  incite  the 
agitated  mob  with  hoarse  cries,  and  from  the  sum- 
mits of  the  minarets  the  horns  of  the  rebels  sound- 
ed continuously,  only  ceasing  at  such  times  as  the 
imams  summoned  the  people  of  Osman  to  glorify 
Allah,  about  the  fifth  hour  of  the  day.  At  the  sound 
of  the  namazat  even  the  furious  popular  tempest 
abated,  only  beginning  again  when  the  last  notes 
of  the  call  to  prayer  ceased  to  resound. 

Stambul  was  literally  turned  upsidedown,  and  the 
dregs  were  swimming  on  the  surface.  The  confra- 
ternity of  porters,  the  water-carriers,  the  boatmen, 
all  stood  by  the  Janissaries  and  swelled  enormously 
the  bulk  of  the  rebels.  Every  mosque,  every  bar- 
rack, was  in  their  power ;  even  the  towers  of  the 
Dardanelles  had  opened  their  gates  to  the  Jamaki, 
who  were  in  alliance  with  the  Janissaries.  The 
Sultan  was  shut  up  in  his  own  palace. 

The  Janissaries  intended  to  carry  the  edifice  of 
the  Sublime  Porte  by  assault,  and  had,  therefore, 
sent  forth  criers  to  the  jebejis,  or  camp-blacksmiths, 


THE   BROKEN    SWORDS  287 

who  were  encamped  with  the  heavy  cannons  on  the 
grounds  of  the  Mosque  of  Sophia,  to  invite  them  to 
begin  the  siege. 

The  emissaries  of  the  Janissaries,  in  brief,  savage 
harangues,  called  upon  the  jebejis  to  put  their  hands 
to  the  bloody  work.  The  latter  listened  to  them, 
but  for  a  long  time  hesitated.  Suddenly  a  shot  fired 
from  amongst  the  crowd  struck  one  of  the  speakers, 
who  fell  down  dead,  whereupon  the  other  jebejis 
rushed  upon  the  envoys  of  the  Janissaries,  cut  them 
down,  and,  flinging  their  severed  heads  into  a  heap, 
shouted,  "  Long  live  the  Sultan  !"  and  with  that 
they  proceeded  in  force  to  the  Seraglio,  took  up  their 
positions  in  front  of  it,  and  turned  their  guns  against 
the  rebels. 

Towards  mid-day,  amidst  strains  of  martial  music, 
the  Kapudan  Pasha  Ibrahim,  whose  nickname  was 
"  The  Infernal,"  arrived  with  four  thousand  marines 
and  fourteen  guns.  A  quarter  of  an  hour  later  were 
to  be  seen  in  the  proximity  of  the  Jali  Kiosk  the 
overwhelming  forces  of  the  Grand  Vizier  Muham- 
mad, who,  under  the  protection  of  the  night,  had 
got  together  the  hosts  of  Asia,  which  had  always 
been  opposed  to  the  Janissaries.  The  Janissary 
Aga  was  there,  too,  with  the  Komparajis  from  To- 
phana.  The  concentrating  masses  welcomed  one  an- 
other with  blood-thirsty  greeting.  It  was  evident, 
from  the  faces  of  their  leaders,  that  they  were  de- 
termined not  to  retreat  a  step  on  the  path  they  had 
taken.  The  last  hour  of  the  Janissaries,  or  of  the 
Ottoman  Empire,  had  struck. 

And  now  the  gates  of  the  Seraglio  were  thrown 
open,  and,  escorted  by  the  high  officers  of  state  and 
the  Ulemas,  the  Sultan  came  forth. 


288  THE    LION   OF  JANINA 

The  Ulemas,  the^imams,  and  the  officers  of  the 
army  stood  in  a  semicircle  round  the  gate.  The 
Sultan  remained  standing  on  the  highest  step. 
There  he  stood  in  the  full  regalia  of  the  padishahs, 
holding  in  one  hand  the  banner  of  the  Prophet  and 
in  the  other  a  drawn  sword. 

"What  do  the  rebels  desire,"  exclaimed,  with  a 
loud,  penetrating  voice,  the  Sheik-ul-Islam,  "who 
rise  up  against  Allah  and  against  the  Head  of  the 
Faith,  the  Padishah  ?" 

The  chief  mufti  replied  with  unction  :  "  It  is 
written  in  the  Kuran,  '  If  the  infidels  rise  against 
their  brethren,  let  them  die  the  death  !'  " 

"  Then  swear  by  the  banner  of  the  Prophet  that 
ye  will  root  out  them  who  have  risen  up  against 
me  !" 

The  viziers  kissed  the  holy  flag  and  took  the  oath 
to  defend  it  to  the  last  drop  of  their  blood. 

"  And  now  close  the  gates !"  commanded  the 
Sultan  ;  and  immediately  he  sent  orders  to  the 
warders  of  all  the  gates  of  Stambul  to  let  nobody 
either  out  or  in.  One  of  the  opposing  hosts  was 
never  to  leave  the  city  alive. 

"  Long  life  to  the  Sultan  !  Death  to  the  Janis- 
saries !"  resounded  from  fifteen  thousand  lips  in 
front  of  the  Seraglio. 

The  Sultan  would  hav.e  led  his  army  in  person 
against  the  rebels,  but  his  generals  fell  down  on 
their  knees  and  implored  him  in  the  name  of  the 
Prophet  not  to  expose  his  life  to  danger.  Let  him 
at  least  give  his  sword  to  the  Grand  Vizier,  that  he 
might  not  soil  it  in  the  blood  of  rebels. 

So  the  gates  were  shut.  This  circumstance  filled 
the  hearts  of  the  rebels  with  terror.  They  foresaw 


THE    BROKEN    SWORDS  289 

that  this  day  would  not  be  followed  by  another  ;  the 
hand  of  indulgence,  of  reconciliation,  now  grasped 
the  weapons  of  war,  of  massacre. 

They  all  assembled  round  the  Etmeidan,  pulled 
down  the  buildings  in  the  street,  and  made  barri- 
cades of  them.  'Tis  a  bad  sign  for  a  rebellion  when 
it  has  to  look  to  its  defence. 

The  forces  of  the  Grand  Vizier  slowly  approached 
amidst  the  roll  of  kettle-drums  ;  the  Derben  Aga  ap- 
peared in  front  of  the  barricades  of  the  Janissaries, 
with  the  sanjak-i-sherif  in  his  hand,  and  summoned 
the  rebels  to  disperse  and  return  to  the  allegiance  of 
the  sacred  banner.  The  rebels  drowned  his  speech 
in  curses,  and  above  the  curses  rose  the  thundering 
voice  of  Kara  Makan  hounding  on  the  fanatical  mob 
against  the  destroyers  of  the  faith  of  Osman. 

"  Wipe  out  these  new  ordinances,  give  up  the  heads 
of  the  godless  ones  who  signed  their  names  below  the 
khat-i-sherif — to  wit  the  Janissary  Aga,  the  Grand 
Vizier,  the  chief  mufti,  and  Nedjib  Effendi !  This 
is  what  the  ortas  of  the  Janissaries  demand  and  their 
honest  confederates,  the  Jamaki,  the  Kayikjis,  and 
the  Hamaloks,  who  remain  faithful  to  the  God  of  the 
Moslemin." 

Thrice  did  the  Derben  Aga  summon  the  rebels  to 
surrender,  and  thrice  did  he  receive  the  same  an- 
swer. They  demanded  the  heads  of  the  viziers. 

Mahmoud's  predecessor  had,  on  a  similar  re- 
quest, surrendered  the  heads  of  the  viziers.  Mah- 
moud  broke  his  sword  in  two  above  their  heads,  and 
throwing  the  broken  pieces  in  the  dust,  exclaimed  : 

"Just  as  I  now  break  in  two  this  sword  and  no- 
body shall  weld  it  together  again,  so  also  shall  ye  be 
overthrown  and  none  shall  raise  you  up  again." 
19 


290  THE   LION   OF   JANINA 

The  next  moment  the  cannons  of  Ibraham  the  In- 
fernal thundered  forth  their  volleys  from  the  Et- 
meidan.  The  bombs  tore  through  the  rickety  wood- 
en barriers,  and  through  the  breach  thus  made  rushed 
Hussein  Pasha  at  the  head  of  the  akinjis  with  Tho- 
mar  Bey  by  his  side. 

The  appearance  of  the  detested  new  soldiers  was 
greeted  by  the  Janissaries  with  a  furious  howl,  but 
the  very  first  moment  convinced  them  that  the  bay- 
onet was  a  very  much  more  powerful  weapon  than 
the  dirk.  Thomar  Bey  headed  the  charge  in  person, 
making  a  way  for  himself  with  his  bayonet  and  clear- 
ing the  ranks  of  the  insurgents  like  a  sharp  wedge. 

On  this  side  there  was  no  deliverance,  so  now, 
with  the  fury  of  despair,  the  insurgents  flung  them- 
selves on  the  guns  of  Ibraham  Pasha,  three  times 
charging  his  death-vomiting  batteries,  and,  thrice  re- 
coiling, leaving  the  ground  covered  with  their  corpses, 
the  terrible  grape-shot  mowing  them  down  in  heaps. 

It  was  all,  all  over.  The  flowers  of  Begtash's  gar- 
den, vanquished,  humbled  by  the  new  soldiers,  fled 
for  refuge  to  the  huge  quadrangular  barracks  which 
occupied  the  ground  at  the  rear  of  the  Etmeidan. 

Kara  Makan  did  not  live  to  experience  that  hour  of 
humiliation;  a  cannon-ball  took  off  his  head  so  clean- 
ly that  his  body  could  only  be  identified  by  his  girdle. 

Within  the  walls  of  the  barracks  the  Janissaries 
made  ready  for  their  last  desperate  combat.  It  was 
now  late.  Ibrahim  the  Infernal  began  to  bombard 
the  barracks  with  red-hot  bullets,  and  within  an 
hour's  time  the  whole  of  the  enormous  building 
was  in  flames.  Those  who  were  inside  the  gates 
remained  there,  for  there  they  were  doomed  to  per- 
ish together.  Amidst  the  roaring  of  the  flames  their 


THE    BROKEN    SWORDS  291 

death-cries  were  audible,  but  the  flames  grew  strong- 
er every  moment  and  the  cry  of  their  mortal  an- 
guish waxed  fainter.  The  generals  stood  around 
the  building,  and  tears  glittered  in  more  eyes  than 
one  ;  after  all,  it  had  been  a  valiant  host ! 

Had  been  !     Those  words  explain  their  doom. 

On  that  day  twenty  thousand  Janissaries  fell  by 
the  command  of  the  Padishah.  Those  whom  the 
bullet  and  the  sword  did  not  reach  perished  by  the 
axe  and  the  bowstring.  Their  bodies  were  given  to 
the  Bosphorus,  and  for  a  long  time  afterwards  the 
billows  of  distant  seas  cast  their  headless  trunks  on 
the  shores  of  countries  far  away.  These  were  the 
flowers  of  Begtash. 

And  so  the  name  of  the  Janissaries  was  blotted 
out  of  the  annals  of  Ottoman  history. 

The  wearing  of  their  uniforms  and  their  insignia 
was  forbidden  under  sentence  of  death.  Their 
barracks  were  levelled  with  the  ground,  their  ban- 
ners were  torn  to  bits,  their  kettles  were  smashed 
to  pieces,  their  memory  was  made  accursed. 

The  order  of  the  Priests  of  Begtash  was  abolished 
forever,  their  religious  homes  were  destroyed,  thefr 
possessions  confiscated. 

Thus  came  to  an  end  a  soldiery  which  had  existed 
for  centuries,  which  the  wise  Chendereli  founded, 
and  which  had  won  so  many  glorious  triumphs  for 
the  Ottoman  arms.  It  was  now  unlawful  to  mention 
its  very  name. 

But  when  the  bloody  work  was  done,  the  Otto- 
man nation  arose  again  full  of  fresh  vigor,  and  it 
owed  a  new  life,  full  of  glorious  days,  to  the  hand 
which  delivered  the  empire  from  its  two  greatest 
enemies — Tepelenti  and  the  Janissaries. 


GLOSSARY   OF    THE    TURKISH    WORDS    USED 
IN   THIS   STORY 


AGA — a  military  and  aulic  title. 

AKINJI — a  sort  of  irregular  cavalry. 

ANADOLI  HISSAR— eastern  castle. 

AZAB — irregular  infantry. 

BAIRAM — the  great  Muhammadan  ecclesiastical  feast. 

BAYADERE— a  dancing-girl. 

BEY — a  dignitary  next  below  a  pasha. 

BOSTANJI — originally  the  gardeners  of  the  Seraglio,  subse- 
quently attendants,  body-guards. 

CHORBAJI— a  Janissary  officer. 

CIAUS — palace  officials  employed  as  attendants,  messen- 
gers, envoys. 

DERBEND  AGA — the  chief  of  the  street  watchmen. 

DIRHAM— a  coin  worth  about  i\d. 

DIVAN — council  of  state. 

DZHIN — a  huge  supernatural  being. 

EFFENDI — a  title  of  honor. 

ETMEIDAN — the  headquarters  of  the  Janissaries. 

FETVA — the  opinion  or  judgment  of  a  mufti. 

FIRAK — bodies  of  troops. 

FIRMAN — a  decree  issued  by  the  Sultan. 

GIAOUR — an  infidel. 

ICHOGLANLER — pages  of  non  -  Muhammadan  parentage 
brought  up  at  the  Sultan's  palace. 

IMAM — a  priest  who  recites  the  canonical  prayers. 


294  THE    LION   OF   JANINA 

JAMAK  —  the  servant  of  a  Janissary. 

JANISSARIES  —  literally,  "  new  soldiers"  (jeni-cheri),  origi- 

nally captive  children  brought  up  to  be  soldiers.     This 

corps  was   for  centuries  the  flower  of  the  Ottoman 

army. 

JANISSARY  AGA  —  the  chief  of  the  Janissaries. 
JERID  —  a  stick  used  as  a  dart  in  military  exercises. 
KADI—  a  judge. 

KADUN-KEIT-KHUDA  —  guardian  of  the  harem. 
KAPU-AGASI  —  Lord  Chamberlain. 
KAPUDAN  PASHA  —  Lord  High  Admiral. 
KAPUJI  —  gate-keeper  of  the  Seraglio. 
KAPUJI  PASHA  —  the  introducer  of  the  ambassadors. 
KAPU-KIAJA  —  chief  magistrate. 
KHAT-I-SHERIF  —  a  command  either  signed  by  the  Sultan 

or  issued  directly  through  him. 
KHUMBARAJI  —  a  bombardier. 
KlZLAR-AGASl  —  chief  inspector  of  the  harem. 
MOLLAH  —  the  title  of  the  highest  grade  of  Ulemas. 
MUEZZIN—  the  caller  to  prayer. 
MUFTIS  —  those  of  the  Ulemas  who  publish  or  seal  the 

fetvas  or  other  public  documents. 
MURSHID  —  a  spiritual  guide. 
NAMAZAT—  the  canonical  prayer. 
ODALISK  —  a  concubine  ;  literally,  chambermaid. 
ORTA  —  a  company  of  Janissaries. 
PALIKAR  —  "  strong  youth,"  a  name  given  to  themselves  by 

the  Klephts,  freebooters  of  Thessaly. 
PARA  —  a  farthing. 

REIS-EFFENDI—  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs. 
SANDJAK-I-SHERIF  —  the  sacred  banner  of  the  Prophet. 


SERAI-AGASI  —  chief  inspector  of  the  Seraglio. 
SERASKIER  —  a  commander-in-chief. 
SHEIK-UL-!SLAM  —  the  chief  of  all  the  muftis  and  Ulemas. 
SILCHIDARS  —  one  of  the  six  divisions  of  the  mercenary 
cavalry,  also  the  Sultan's  armor-bearers. 


GLOSSARY    OF    TURKISH    WORDS  295 

SIPAHIS  )  One  of  the  six  divisions  of  the  mercenary  cav- 

SPAHIS   (        airy. 

SULIOTES — a  warlike  Hellenized  race  of  Albanian  origin  in 

the  Pachalik  of  Janina. 
SULTANA-ASSEKI — The  Sultan's  consort. 
SULTANA- VALIDEH — the  Sultan's  mother. 
TIMARIOTES — Turkish  feudal  militia. 
TOPORABAJ  I— gunners. 
TOPIJIS — gunners. 
ULEMAS — the  learned  men,  including  the  muftis,  the  mol- 

lahs.the  kadis — in  short,  all  the  legal  and  ecclesiastical 

functionaries. 


THE    END 


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